


Want to Move Forward and Forget

by Jellybean96



Series: Providence!AU [1]
Category: Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. (TV)
Genre: Canon Divergence, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, F/M, Friendship, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Pre-Relationship, Pregnancy, Season 2 Canon Divergence, Slow Burn, Unplanned Pregnancy, characters to be added as they appear, really slow burn
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-11-07
Updated: 2019-05-18
Packaged: 2019-08-20 07:46:05
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 22
Words: 42,752
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16551815
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Jellybean96/pseuds/Jellybean96
Summary: One moment is all it took for everything in their worlds to change.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Hey babes! Back again with a new story for ya! I'm really, really excited to share this one with you guys! My friend (gears-of-ward) and I came up with this one and we've been writing the basic structure of it for a little while and just recently finished. I also just recently finished writing the first part (yes, there will be a sequel that I've already started writing) and am so excited for you guys to read.
> 
> All you really need to know is that this is going to be a bit AU. A lot of the elements from season 2 will still be there, but the timetable has kind of been moved up. I really hope you guys have fun reading what we've created. We're both excited about this one. :)
> 
> Enjoy!

" _I am not a good man, Skye."_

" _Yes, you are."_

_Their eyes connect in silent conversation long before their lips do. Crashing together after a mere moment's hesitation, his fingers carding through her hair in a passionate frenzy, needing to be closer to her. Her hands caress the side of his face, kissing him hard, needing to be closer to him than she is. They both shift on the couch, moving closer together, desire and need coursing through their bodies as they continue deepening the kiss._

" _Are you sure?" he asks when her hands slide down the front of his shirt, fiddling with the snap of his jeans._

_She nods breathlessly. "I'm positive. I want this. I want you. Please."_

_Hesitating for another small moment, not quite believing that it's happening, he connects their lips again. He wraps a hand around her lower back, pulling her closer as he leans forward, pushing her back so she's lying on the couch, his body hovering above hers._

_Her fingers continue to mess with the clasp on his jeans until he takes pity on her and finishes the task himself, quickly unbuttoning them and then pulling down his zipper. She helps him as he slides out of his jeans, and then her hands are on his torso, pushing his t-shirt up his body._

" _Well now," he says when his shirt is tossed to the floor. "I don't think this is very fair."_

" _No, I don't think that it is."_

_Sitting up, she keeps eye contact with him as she lifts her own t-shirt over her head and tosses it to the floor to join his. She smirks when his eyes darken. "See something you like?" she asks._

_He nods his head and then stares into her deep brown eyes, his hands drifting up to her sides, his thumbs brushing against the underwire of her bra. "I most definitely do."_

_He surges forward, reconnecting their lips as his hands roam her body, committing every curve and valley to his memory._

_Lifting her hands, she tangles one in his hair and the other curls up around his waist, holding onto him tightly as he slowly lowers them back against the couch._

" _Are you sure you won't regret this later in the day?" he asks against her lips._

" _I'm sure," she tells him. "I want this, Grant. I want you."_

_His heart skips at hearing his first name pass through her lips. "I want this too," he admits._

" _Good."_

_Searing their lips together once more, the rest of her clothing is shed as they get lost within each other, everything on the other side of the door slipping far away._

.

.

.

Unshed tears sting at her eyes as she stares down at the offending piece of plastic in her hand. The timer on her phone has long since gone off, its chime still echoing quietly in her ears as everything else fades away. This cannot be happening. Not to her. Not now. Not with everything else that's going on. This is the last thing that she needs. But at least it explains why she's been puking her guts out so much recently.

She went to Simmons and after she told her how she'd been feeling, the woman assumed it to just be a stomach bug and told her to get plenty of rest and make sure to drink lots of fluids. So that's what she'd been doing for the last few days.

But then, the fateful day came when she realized she'd missed her period and all the gears in her head started turning, trying to piece it all together. The final piece to the puzzle, however, was the pregnancy test. A test that she now has in her hand and is wondering exactly why they have them on the base. SHIELD really is prepared for everything, apparently.

"Oh crap," she whispers to herself when her mind actually puts everything together and she flashes back to that day that seems so long ago now.

They'd both wanted it, she knows that. But now that she thinks about it, did he really want what happened between them, or was he just playing the same old game with her? Did he sleep with her just to further whatever his agenda was? Or did he honestly want to be with her in that way? She might never know. Not with him being locked up.

At the thought of being in the same building as the man who broke her heart, her stomach starts to churn. She drops the test and rushes to the toilet, falling to her knees and emptying her lunch into it.

She groans as she sinks the rest of the way to the floor, leaning back against the wall.

Tears sting at her eyes again as her head lolls to the side and she catches sight of the abandoned pregnancy test on the tiled floor next to her. Everything is different now, nothing will ever be the same. No matter what has happened in the past, whatever mistakes she's made; no matter what her plans for the future would have been, none of it matters. There's only one thing that really matters now.

Breathing in deeply, she pushes herself off the floor and moves to the sink to wash the taste of vomit from her mouth.

She stares at herself in the mirror, focusing on the heavy bags under her eyes from the many sleepless nights since joining S.H.I.E.L.D. She suspects that they're only going to get worse over the next eighteen years.

Her eyes go slightly wide when it dawns on her where her mind just went. She sighs. "Guess this is really happening, then."

Stepping away from the counter she cleans up her mess, wrapping the test in toilet paper and shoving it to the bottom of the trashcan. She just hopes no one else finds it before the trash run and tries to figure out whose it is. No one can know yet. Not until she herself really comes to terms with it.

Quickly washing her face and fixing her hair, she makes her way out of the bathroom, shutting off the light in the process.

Shuffling through the hallway, she gives a tight smile to the few agents she passes by on her way to the lounge. She doesn't know any of them very well. The first few months she was with SHIELD she only ever interacted with her own team. And now she's a little too set in her ways and never exactly finds the time to reach out and get to know any of the other agents.

"Skye?"

Looking over her shoulder, she finds Simmons approaching her just outside the lounge, a friendly smile on her face.

The Brit pulls her into a quick hug. "Hey, how are you doing? Are you feeling alright? I noticed that you've been in your room a lot lately and I just wanted to make sure that you're doing alright and don't any kind of med-"

"I'm fine," she snaps and then sighs. She rubs a hand across her forehead. "Sorry, sorry. I'm just... really tired right now, haven't been getting much sleep lately. I think I just need to take go and take a nap."

"Oh. Of course. That stomach bug still bothering you, then?"

She pulls her lips in tight and nods, resisting the urge to place a hand on her stomach. "Yeah, stomach bug. It's been pretty bad."

"Still?"

She nods. "Yeah."

"I'm sorry to hear that. Just get lots of rest and try to take things easy until you get over this."

_In nine months,_  she thinks to herself.

She gives Simmons another tight smile. "Absolutely. I was actually just going to grab a snack and then go back to my room to catch up on some of that sleep."

"Good plan. And I'm going to go and see to Fitz. Anything you'd like me to tell him for you?"

_I'm pregnant with the baby of the man who tried to kill you,_ she thinks but doesn't say. It would definitely not be the wisest thing to say at the moment.

She swallows and shakes her head. "Uh, no, that's okay."

"Alright. I'll see you later, then."

"Yeah, see ya."

She waits until Simmons is out of her sight before moving into the lounge and going straight for the kitchenette at the back end of the room. She rifles through the cabinets for something to snack on that isn't going to make her stomach churn later in the day, and then moves back down the hall to her room.

Stepping inside, she tosses her food onto the desk just inside as she closes the door and locks it. She sighs and runs a hand through her hair before toeing off her shoes against the wall.

Lying back on her bed, she pulls her shirt up, resting her hands flat on her stomach. She cradles the skin there, trying to find any evidence of a baby actually being in there. But she finds none. Her skin is a little bit more taut than usual, but there's no bump that she can see.

"So there's actually a person in there," she says to no one in particular. "Well, I guess you're not actually a person yet, but you'll get there eventually. In about nine months or so, apparently. Just promise me you won't cause too much trouble, okay?"

Rolling onto her side, she grabs her tablet and pulls it onto the bed with her. She sits up and sets the tablet in her lap, tapping her fingers on the screen to log in.

Opening up the web browser, she begins searching for everything that she can on pregnancy, purchasing a few e-books in the process to read at a later date.

She finds a few different blogs on motherhood that she bookmarks, though she does read a few posts on each blog, allowing her to get different perspectives on parenting and the like.

Letting out a heavy yawn, she realizes how tired she actually is, that she wasn't really lying when she told Simmons that she was going to take a nap.

Making sure she has her page saved, she locks the device and sets it down next to her before curling up on her side against her pillow. She breathes in deeply as her eyelids flutter closed, her body relaxing as she starts in early on getting caught up on her sleep. 


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey babes! Thanks for all the love on the first chapter of this story. Means a lot to me to see that you're all enjoying it so far.
> 
> So here's the next chapter for you!
> 
> Enjoy!

* * *

Waking up the next morning, she makes an immediate beeline for the bathroom. She falls to her knees against the linoleum and dry heaves into the toilet. Tears sting at her eyes while she waits for the heaving to subside.

She leans against the wall beside the toilet, breathing heavily with her mouth open as she waits for her stomach to settle back down. She honestly wishes she'd actually eaten something the night before instead of just going to sleep, probably would have made this early bout of morning sickness slightly more bearable, but she couldn't. She turned her nose up at each thing she desperately wished she could eat.

"I thought I told you not to cause me too much trouble," she mutters, glancing down at her stomach. "This is exactly the kind of stuff I meant."

Struggling for a moment to get up off the floor, she flushes the toilet, despite nothing having escaped her stomach, and moves over to the sink to brush her teeth.

She runs her fingers through her hair a bit to get out some of the tangles but doesn't bother running an actual brush through it. She's too tired for that. And it's not like she's going out into town anytime soon.

Letting out a heavy sigh, she leaves the comfort of her room and braves a trip into the rest of the base.

Trudging down the hallway and into the lounge, she makes her way over to the kitchenette, brushing her hair out of her face as she opens the refrigerator and takes some time to inspect the contents inside. Unfortunately, none of it seems too appealing.

"Looking for something in particular?"

Jumping slightly, she looks over her shoulder to find Trip sauntering into the room, a book held in his hand. "Oh, hey. Yeah, I'm uh, not too hungry for breakfast, so I'm just looking for something to settle my stomach for now."

He nods. "Simmons mentioned you were feeling under the weather the last few days."

"Yeah, hopefully, I'll be over it soon. Do you know if we have any nuts or things?"

"We might. But what's with the healthy eating all of a sudden?" he asks her. "Your idea of a midday snack is potato chips, bowls of candy, or ice cream."

She shrugs. "Simmons is always on me about making healthier food choices, and since I've been feeling gross lately I figured it was a good idea to try it."

"And how's that working out for you so far?"

She tilts her head. "Mmm...I'm not sure yet. But I'll let you know."

He chuckles. "Good plan." He takes a deep breath. "So, any chance you'd be up to hanging out for a bit? I've got a break from mission stuff for a while."

She sighs. "I would. But I'm really tired. Being sick has always drained me since I was a kid, so I'm gonna take a nap after I finish eating."

"Alright, no problem, girl. I hope you feel better."

She gives him a small smile. "Thanks. So do I. Though I have a feeling it might take longer than I want for it to run its course."

"I'm sure you'll be fine."

She laughs quietly. "That's the hope at least. I'll see you later, yeah? I just really need that nap now."

He nods. "Yeah, no problem."

Giving Trip one last smile, she makes her way out of the lounge and down the hallway back to her room.

Closing and locking the door so no one can barge in, even though she knows no one will, she grabs her tablet as she sits down on the edge of her bed before scooting back against the headboard. She unlocks the device and opens up the blogs that she had bookmarked the day before, eager to learn as much as she can before her own baby arrives.

She continues reading through different posts on various subjects of pregnancy and motherhood, some being rather vague in the details, and some being excruciatingly detailed. But they all have her thinking. A lot of the posts talk about how the mothers, and some fathers who write the blogs, notice little similarities between their child and their partner. It makes her heart clench.

Locking the device, she sets it aside and moves into her bathroom, standing in front of the sink, her hands braced on either side as she stares down into the bowl. She's not sure if she's going to be sick, or if it's all just in her head.

Her stomach churns and she instinctively rests a hand there, rubbing her thumb back and forth, hoping her stomach will calm down for a little while.

As she stands there her mind starts to wander to all the posts she read about semi-happy families, where the parents are together and happy, with their third or fourth child and how they work together like a well-oiled machine to take care of their kids.

"I don't get that," she mutters to herself. "I don't get to have any of that. Why did I ever think I could have the picture perfect happy life with the white picket fence and the handsome husband and a couple of kids? That's never been my luck. I don't even have my damn parents to help me through any of this." She sighs. "It's times like this when I could really use a mom of my own."

Looking up from the sink, she watches her reflection in the mirror in front of her. Her eyes are tired, something that's not unfamiliar to her from all the sleepless nights she'd spend hacking in her van. There's more there that she doesn't quite recognize, but knows it has everything to do with recent events. She sighs and lets her shoulders sag. She hangs her head before leaning back and focusing on her stomach.

"What are we gonna do, kiddo?" she asks. "What are people going to think when I tell them about you?" She looks back up at her reflection. "I guess it doesn't really matter what anyone else says, right? It just matters what I think. Because I'm your mom." She huffs out a laugh. "Wow. I'm going to be a mom." She looks back down, resting one hand on the flat area. "I promise you right now that you can always count on me for whatever you need, okay? We've always got to have each other's back. I don't want anyone here to hate me because of who your father is, so we'll do our best, alright?"

She sighs, pushing off the counter and moving back to sit on the toilet lid. "But they probably will hate you. Or at least the idea of you. Your father did a lot of awful things, kid, and other people are probably going to try and hold that against you because they're all still upset about it. Even I'm upset by what he did."

She takes a deep breath and sits up straighter, looking down at her stomach and resting a hand there. "But you're not your father. And I'm going to raise you right. I'm going to make sure that you know right from wrong and to always make the best choices that you can as you grow up."

She leans against the back of the toilet as she absentmindedly rubs her thumb over her belly. "We've got this, kiddo, we've got this."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So? What did you think? Let me know in a review down below. I'd love to hear your thoughts.
> 
> Until next time,  
> Jellybean96 out!


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey babes! Back again with a new chapter for ya! I'm really glad you guys are enjoying this so far. Makes me pretty happy.
> 
> Enjoy!

A few days pass and while she woke up somewhat nauseous that morning, she hasn't actually gotten sick yet, so she takes that as a plus.

She's thankfully able to not be sick long enough to get some type of food in her. Any of her normal breakfast options are no-go's, though, as apparently, her baby would rather have boring oatmeal.

She sighs. "Guess this is my life, now. Well, at least, until you get here," she says, glancing down at her stomach. "Can't you just let me eat what I want to eat?"

Letting out another sigh, she drops her spoon into the bowl and pushes it away from her, the smell of the oatmeal starting to make her stomach churn.

"Now I can't even eat oatmeal? Are you kidding me right now?"

"Everything alright in here?"

She looks over her shoulder to find Coulson in the doorway to the lounge, a tablet in one hand as he watches her with furrowed brows.

She nods and pulls her lips in tight. "Yeah, everything's fine. Just uh...just getting over a stomach bug. Trying to eat but it's hard to keep anything down."

"Ah, right. Well, I hope you feel better soon."

"Thanks, Coulson."

He smiles at her before looking back down at his tablet as he continues down the hallway toward his office most likely.

The corners of her lips fall when she thinks about the man's possible reaction to her pregnancy. Her mind then wanders to the rest of the members of the team and how they'll all react, what they'll think of her for sleeping with the enemy. Though, in her defense, she didn't know he was the enemy until after the fact. But they probably won't care about that. They'll just see what they want to see.

Maybe she's not giving them enough credit, though. They're the only real family she has, that she's ever had, maybe she's just assuming the worst because she's always been dealt the crappiest hand in life.

"No," she says to herself. "I have to give them all the benefit of the doubt. Right?"

She sighs again and glances down at her stomach. "Might as well start off with one and see how it goes. Then I can decide when and how to tell the others." She nods, trying to reassure herself. "Yeah, that's good. Okay." She takes a deep breath. "Let's do this."

Sliding off the stool, she makes her way out of the lounge and down the hallway toward the staircase leading to her boss' office.

As she gets closer, her heartbeat picks up and her stomach churns a little more. There really is no backing out of this. She has to tell him. She has to tell all of them eventually. Unless she runs. She can always run and not come back and that way no one has to know. But they'll all come looking for her, she knows they will. And she doesn't doubt that they'll find her eventually. Though, she could probably take measures to delay them in actually finding her.

Before she knows it, she reaches Coulson's office, standing in front of the closed door.

Breathing in deeply, she lifts a hand and wraps softly on the wood. She waits a few seconds and then knocks again after not getting a response.

"Who is it?"

"It's Skye," she says back. "I need...could I talk to you for a moment?"

"Come on in."

Pushing the door open, she steps inside the office and closes the door, biting her lip between her teeth as she thinks of the best way to come clean. Her stomach churns once more and she fights to keep it together. She cannot lose it before she even has a chance to tell him.

"So," Coulson speaks up, folding his hands together and resting them on top of his desk, "to what do I owe this visit to my office? Are you feeling any better from when I saw you a few minutes ago?"

"Um, a little. I uh, I actually have something that I need to talk to you about."

He nods. "Okay."

She takes a deep breath in, closing her eyes and holding tightly to her own hands as she prepares herself. "I'm pregnant," she says, figuring it best to just rip the band-aid off instead of trying to beat around the bush. "That's the real reason I've been so off lately." She pauses. "And Ward's the father."

Not hearing a single sound in response to her confession, she cracks open one eye to see Coulson staring silently ahead, his lips pursed together tightly. She opens her other eye and nearly cries at the look of disappointment that's clear on his face.

"Oh, I see," he says, shifting in his chair and breathing in deeply. "And when did you two..."

"At the Providence base," she tells him quickly before he can try to finish his sentence. "We were alone, finally having a drink together and talking, and then we were kissing, and I guess you can figure out what happened next."

He nods. "Right. So you're about a month along, at the least."

She nods. "Yeah, I think so."

"Well, I hope you know that you two will be very comfortable here; if you still want to stay that is. I would completely understand if you wanted to leave and try to find a better life for you and your...baby. To try and have a normal life."

She shakes her head. "No. I want...I want to stay here. This is my home. I feel safe with you guys."

He gives her a small smile. "I'm glad to hear that. I'll do my best to make sure that feeling stays."

"Thank you."

"You don't need to thank me. And I appreciate you coming to me with this."

"I trust you," she says to him. "You're kinda like the dad I always wish I'd had growing up."

"Well, if it had been up to me, I would have been," he tells her with a small smile. "I would have done a great job at raising you."

She smiles back. "I'm sure you would have." She's quiet for a moment before shifting on her feet. "Um, well, thanks, then. I'll see you later." She turns around and heads for the door when his voice stops her.

"Do you want to tell Ward?"

She hangs her head and sighs, slowly turning around. "I don't know," she admits. "I just...after everything that happened...I don't know if I can really face him. Not yet, at least. I mean, I know that I'm the only one he'll talk to, but I don't think I can do it just yet."

Coulson nods. "I understand. I won't force you to do anything you don't want to do. I just hope that we'll still be able to get what we need from him if you decide not to speak with him. And I want you to know that I'm here for you, okay? Whatever you need, you just ask."

"Thanks."

Without another word, she makes her way out of the office and down the hallway toward her own room. She lets out a relieved breath, glad that the older man wasn't angry or upset. At least, not outwardly angry or upset. She's sure that she saw disappoint on his face and that makes the tears come back to her eyes. The last thing she ever wanted to do is disappoint him.

Falling down onto her bed once she's in her room, she raises her shirt and places both of her hands flat on her stomach.

"One down, kiddo," she says on a sigh. "I just told Coulson about you. It went a lot better than I thought it would. I was pretty sure he was going to scream or yell when I told him who your father is. He isn't exactly anyone's favorite person at the moment. But no matter what happens, you've always got me, okay? I'm never going to let anything happen to you. I'm your mom, it's my job to protect you. So that's what I'm going to do, alright?"

Letting out a small sigh, she reaches out for her tablet, unlocking it and going into her bookshelf. She opens up the first book she downloaded and begins reading through its contents until her exhaustion gets the better of her.

As she falls asleep, thought after thought about her baby and its future race through her head. Is everything going to be okay? Can she really do this? Should she really raise her baby at SHIELD? Who's going to help and support her? Should even tell Ward that she's pregnant? What good will it do? Will he corrupt the child if she lets him be near him or her? Can she really protect her child? Is she even going to be a good mom? 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So? What did you think? Let me know in a review down below. I'd love to hear your thoughts.
> 
> Until next time,  
> Jellybean96 out!


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey babes! Back again with a new chapter for ya! Thanks for all the love so far! It's much appreciated!
> 
> Enjoy!

Two days pass and she hasn't talked to Coulson since she told him about her news. She hasn't seen him for more than a few seconds at a time since then, and whenever she did, he hasn't looked at her the same way. Almost like he's disappointed but doesn't want her to know that's how he feels. But she knows. And she hates it.

Leaning her head back against the wall behind her, she lets her tablet fall into her lap. She runs her hand through her hair and lets out a heavy sigh.

Glancing over at the clock on the bedside table, she frowns at the hour. She hasn't been able to sleep very well the last couple of days. Everything that went down with Coulson is still fresh in her mind and it's been keeping her up. (That along with her constant nausea isn't a good combo).

She isn't sure what he did after she told him, and she's not sure if she really does want to know.

She knows that once the news gets out to everyone else that it'll have them all worried because Ward is the father. She knows everyone will be mad at her.

"I don't regret it," she says quietly to herself, her hand having found its way to her stomach a few moments earlier. She looks down. "I love you, and I don't regret what I did. No matter what your father has done, kid, when I was with him, he was...he was different. It's like all those walls he built up were starting to come down and he was letting me in."

She looks up to the ceiling, her mind wandering to the man currently locked up down in their basement. Should she tell him? What will he say if she does tell him? Will he be happy? Or upset? Will he even want to be involved? And if he does, should she let him?

Groaning in frustration, she sinks down on her bed. "I don't think any other woman on the face of the planet has ever had a dilemma like this before? Do I tell the father of my baby about said baby when said father is locked up in my basement because he's a killer and possibly crazy?"

She looks down at her still flat stomach once again. "I just want to do what's best for you, kiddo. I don't want you to be hurt by him. Ever. It's the worst feeling in the world. Guess we'll just have to stick together and take it day by day, then, huh?"

She runs her hands over her stomach and gives it a little pat before glancing over at the clock. She sighs. "But since I'm up because you are part of the reason for my not being able to sleep, I guess there's someone we can cross off the list of who I need to tell."

Pushing herself off the bed, she stretches her arms above her head and then crosses to the door and out into the hallway.

She passes a few agents who are getting an early start on their day as she makes her way to the gym. It's been a while since she's been to the gym. She hasn't had the energy or motivation to train. She knows that her S.O. has noticed. She wouldn't be the best at what she does if she didn't.

Stopping in the doorway, she finds the older woman silently moving in the center of the blue mats spread out across the floor.

"Hey, May, could I...could I talk to you for a minute?" she speaks up as she slowly enters the room and approaches the woman.

May's silent as she continues her tai-chi, glancing up quickly at Skye.

"Right. So, I, um, I have something important to tell you. I wanted to tell you myself, and I'm really hoping that Coulson didn't beat me to this because it's my news to tell. I'm sure you've noticed that I haven't been showing up to train recently, and I have a really good reason for it. I'm uh, I'm pregnant. And Ward's the father."

May pauses in her movements before standing up straight. She adjusts the black tank top she's wearing. "How far along are you?"

"Um, a month, I think."

"And Ward's the father."

She nods. "Yeah. It was back at Providence and we were talking and then kissing and then—"

"Stop. You didn't know who he was. None of us did. It's not your fault. He played you."

"Right. So, um, you're not mad?"

"No."

"Are you sure? Because it kinda seems like you are and I just want to make sure that there's no hard feelings or anything because I know that you—"

"I'm not mad," May bites quickly. "Are you taking care of yourself?"

"Um, I'm trying to. Never exactly done this before."

"Are you keeping it?"

"I think so, yeah."

May looks at her with no emotion evident on her face. "Okay. Are we done here now?"

"Um, y-yeah, we're done."

"Great."

Without another word, May returns to the form she was in before Skye walked in and continues her tai-chi.

Skye lets out a heavy sigh and turns to make her way out of the gym. She's not sure what she was expecting or hoping for when she told May about the baby. At least the woman didn't overreact, considering her own history with Ward.

"That went better than expected, too," she mumbles under her breath. "Two for two, now. But, I'm sure that streak will break very soon."

She walks past the lab on her way through the base, glancing inside to find the scientist who just crossed her mind working on a new project to one end of the room.

The woman looks up and flashes her a kind smile. She does her best to smile back.

"That's probably going to be the hardest conversation of them all," she says to herself. She thinks for a moment. She sighs and shakes her head. "Nope, scratch that. She'll definitely be the hardest one to tell." She glances down at her stomach. "Out of everyone, she probably hates your dad the most. Can't say I blame her, though, with everything that happened."

She sighs and turns away from the lab, continuing down the hall toward nothing in particular. As she walks, she lets out a large yawn and realizes that she's actually exhausted from telling May about the baby. Though, it could also account to the fact that she hasn't slept much.

"You are certainly not making things easy for me, are you?" she says, directed down toward her stomach as she lets out another yawn. "I've already got enough problems trying to tell the team about you. Simmons is honestly the last person that I want to tell. And she and Fitz are always together so maybe I'll tell them at the same time. Two birds with one stone, right?"

She laughs quietly. "Had I known how much stress telling the team was actually going to cause me, I probably wouldn't have said anything to any of them and just let them figure it out on their own." She breathes in deeply. "But, I'm already committed to doing this, so I might as well see it through to the end.

"And since I'm going to tell FitzSimmons last because I am in no way eager to see how Simmons is going to react, maybe I could tell Trip next. And he may actually be able to help defuse the tension when I tell Simmons. They seem kind of close."

She sighs, leaning against the wall next to her. "You know, people are going to start thinking I'm crazy if I keep talking to you like this."

She lets out another yawn. "Tomorrow. I'll tell Trip tomorrow. Right now I really need to sleep. And then to do some more reading. Can never be too prepared, right? Plus, telling May still has me a little shaken up. I need some time to recover."

Pushing off the wall, she continues down the hall toward her room, eager to finally get some amount of sleep. Hopefully.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So? What did you think? Let me know in a review down below. I'd love to hear your thoughts.
> 
> And now another person knows about the baby. But when will Ward find out? Stick around to see. :)
> 
> Also, it's that time of year again, the holiday season. Which means when the New Year rolls around, I will once again be doing a New Year's Eve Q&A on my YouTube channel. If any of you have any questions for me at all (just nothing inappropriate please), feel free to leave them in a review. Thank you!
> 
> Until next time,  
> Jellybean96 out!


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey babes! Back again with a new chapter for ya! I think this one's a bit longer than the previous chapters, but I don't think you guys will mind. :)
> 
> Enjoy!

* * *

Taking a deep breath, she steps into the lounge, finding Trip relaxing back on the couch with a book in his hand and a bottle of beer on the table in front of him.

"Hey, Trip, can I talk to you for a second?"

He looks up from his book and smiles at her. "Yeah, girl, what's up?" He shifts on the couch so he's sitting up better and facing her a little.

She slowly sits down next to him and runs her sweaty palms over the fabric of her jeans. "Um, I have something I need to tell you, and I really hope you react a certain way because so far I haven't had too much luck."

Trip's brows furrow together. "What are you talking about? What's going on?"

She breathes in deeply, closing her eyes. Third time doing this and it's not any easier than the first two times. "I'm pregnant," she tells him. "And Ward's the father."

Before she can open her eyes, a strong pair of arms wraps tightly around her and Trip's laugh rings through her ear. "Congrats, girl. This is amazing." He pulls back and she feels the tears rush to her eyes when she sees him grinning like an idiot. "You're gonna be a mom."

"You're actually...you're happy about this?"

He gives her an incredulous look. "Of course I am. Why wouldn't I be?"

"Because of who the father is," she says quietly.

He waves her off. "Please, I woulda been upset if it wasn't him. From the moment I met you two, I could tell there was something there. Now you're having his kid, it's like a little piece of the two of you all smushed together and despite everything that's happened and what he did, this is gonna be awesome for you."

She chokes on a sob, one hand covering her mouth and the other resting on her still flat stomach.

Trip frowns. "Whoa, hey, what did I say? Did I say something wrong?"

She shakes her head, breathing in deeply to try and contain her tears. "No. You...you said everything right. Your reaction is the best reaction I've gotten so far and I kinda don't want to tell anyone else because I have a feeling this is as good as it's going to get and now I wish I had told you last."

"Who else have you already told?"

"Coulson and May. Coulson wasn't exactly thrilled. He tried not to let it show, but I could tell that he was disappointed. And May...I never know what she's thinking. She was just super straight-faced." She sighs. "And then there's Simmons."

"Have you decided when you're going to tell her?"

She shakes her head. "No. Not yet. I'm kind of...trying to hold off on that for as long as I possibly can."

"Scared she's going to react badly?"

She scoffs and nods. "Oh, yeah. She's probably been the most vocal one around here about how much she hates Ward. He dropped the pod that she and Fitz were in out of the Bus and into the ocean. It sunk to the bottom and now Fitz has brain damage because of what he had to do to get them out of there. So she's not exactly his biggest fan."

Trip nods. "Right. I remember hearing about that. And you don't need to worry, I've got your back."

"Really?"

He nods again. "Absolutely, girl. I'm here for you. I'll be your moral support when you go tell her. And I'll be here for whatever you need throughout all of this."

She lets out a relieved sigh. "That would be...fantastic. You're the actual best, Trip."

He laughs quietly. "Girl, you know how I do."

She laughs with him. "That I do."

"So tell me about you two."

Her brows furrow. "About who?"

"You and Ward," he clarifies, leaning back on the couch and looking at her with a small smile. "Tell me about you two."

"Uh, what do you want to know?"

He shrugs. "Whatever you want to tell me."

She shifts on the couch, relaxing a little. "Okay. Well, um, we had kind of a rough start, since we have two very different views on the world. But uh, we eventually came to some kind of an understanding, and he became my SO."

"That must have been fun. I know how tough of a regimen Ward had on his own training."

"He definitely did not go easy in any aspect of it," she says with a small laugh. "He really pushed me. I uh...I didn't want to admit it after everything that happened, but a lot of the agent that I am today is because of him. He pushed me to be better than my best."

"He wanted you to be able to protect yourself."

She nods. "Yeah. I think he felt guilty when I got shot, though. Because he was my SO and he wasn't there to stop Quinn from pulling the trigger. I think...I think that's when things started shifting. Kind of one of those...life flashing before your eyes type of moments. At least, that's when it happened for me."

"When you started feeling something for him?"

"When I realized I was feeling something for him."

Trip nods. "Right. But nothing happened until you were at the Providence base."

She nods. "Yeah. We'd kind of been dancing around each other, I don't think he wanted to get involved with his trainee. But then...I guess whatever tension was between us finally snapped when we were at the Providence base. We were finally having that drink we'd been talking about." She smiles a little at the memory. "And then he kissed me...and everything changed...and then this little one happened." Her smile widens as she places both hands on her still flat stomach. She looks back up at Trip. "Despite everything that happened, I wouldn't change a single second of it. He hurt me, that much is very true, but I love this baby so much already and I just...I really can't wait to be a mom. It's something I never thought I'd get to experience with the kind of life I had growing up, but now it's actually happening."

"And I'll be right here the whole way. Whether or not you decide to tell Ward, you can count on me to be here for whatever you need. I'm gonna do what I can to keep you two safe. Gotta protect that little nugget in there."

She frowns. "You did not just call my baby a nugget."

He shrugs. "Can't keep calling it an 'it'."

"Hence why you call it a baby."

"I'm gonna stick with nugget for now."

She sighs. "Fine. I guess it's better than some of the nicknames I've read online that people have given their children. And hey, I just...I really appreciate you being here. Like I said before, you're the first one to actually be genuinely happy about this baby and I'm really glad because I don't think I'd be able to get through this if everyone on this base hated me and oh gosh...stupid hormones." She's unable to hold back as the tears fall from her eyes. "I swear I'm not doing this on purpose."

Trip chuckles and pulls her in for a hug. "It's all good, girl. I've got you, you don't need to worry about a thing, alright? I'm gonna be the best damn uncle this kid has ever seen."

Skye laughs as she pulls out of the hug, wiping at her eyes. "I'm going to hold you to that. Just try not to spoil them too much, okay?"

"Hey, no promises. And I was thinking, if you're up for it, we could go find FitzSimmons and tell them right now. That way you're not stressing over it anymore and can get it out of the way and then just worry about keeping yourself and the lil nugget safe and healthy."

She takes a few, slow breaths to calm herself down again. "Um, I think...I think I might be okay to go."

"Are you sure?"

She nods. "Yeah. Like you said, better to get it done now than keep stressing out about it."

He gives her a small smile. "Alright. Let's go then." He stands from the couch and holds his hand out to help her up from the couch.

"I can stand just fine on my own, you know," she says, still accepting his help.

"I know. But my nana raised me to be a gentleman."

She laughs quietly. "Alright. Then you can take charge of teaching my kid how to be a gentleman if it's a boy."

Trip smiles. "I would be honored."

"Good. Then I'm just going to go and—"

"Nice try," Trip says, gently taking her hand to keep her there. "But you already agreed to this, so we're going to do this right now to get it over and done with. No more stressing or putting it off."

Skye sighs. "Fine, you're right. Let's go."

"That's the spirit." He gives her a reassuring smile and then they're on their way out of the lounge and down toward the lab.

She knows that's where the two scientists will be. Since Fitz woke from his coma, Simmons has been doing everything she can to help him recover. She truly does wish for Fitz to get better as quickly as possible. She knows how much the man relies on his mind and his hands and without those, he probably feels like he can't do anything.

They reach the lab quicker than she wanted them to. She was so lost in her own head that she didn't realize they were there until she heard the familiar voice next to her.

"Knock knock," Trip says, rapping his knuckles against the metal framing of the doorway. A small smile is on his face as he watches Fitz and Simmons turn away from whatever project they'd been working on.

Skye stays as close to Trip's side as she possibly can, wringing her hands together as she watches the two people across the room.

"Skye? Are you alright? Is that stomach bug still bothering you? I may have something to help with that if you'll just give me a moment to find it."

Skye shakes her head but remains silent, pushing a little closer to Trip.

"Hey," Trip whispers to her, "it's okay. I'm right here. Just tell her. Like you did with me. Just tell her the truth."

Skye nods. "Okay," she whispers back. She stands up a little straighter and faces Simmons, taking a few small steps into the room. She notices Fitz lingering in the back, caressing his left hand as he mumbles to himself. She takes a deep breath, not closing her eyes this time, choosing instead to look Simmons directly in the eyes. "I'm pregnant. That's why I've been so sick. And Ward's the father."

Simmons blanches before her eyes and she almost wants to laugh at the idea of the other woman getting sick when that's all she's been doing herself for the past few weeks. But this is definitely not a laughing moment.

"Oh. Well. That's...um…"

"What's going on?" Fitz speaks up, taking a step forward and looking between Skye and Simmons. "What did she say?"

"Nothing," Simmons says quickly. "It doesn't matter."

Her stomach flips. Simmons hates her. And her baby. She knew it. She knew it would happen like this. This is why she didn't want to tell her in the first place. There's a part of her that would have been perfectly fine with not telling her.

Thankfully, Trip notices the obvious look of nausea on her face and decides to take charge of the situation. "Skye's pregnant, Fitz," he says directly to the Scotsman. "With Ward's baby. The two of them were together at the Providence base, before any of us knew he had ties with Hydra, and she got pregnant. She's going to keep the baby and raise it."

"A baby?" Fitz asks with furrowed brows. "Babies are loud. They cry a lot. At night."

Trip laughs quietly. "We'll make sure the nugget doesn't keep you up at night."

"You're calling it nugget?"

Trip shrugs. "For now. If I find a better nickname, then I'll use it, but for right now I'm calling the baby 'nugget'."

"Cute. And uh...um...con...congrats. On the baby."

"No," Simmons says sharply before Skye can respond to Fitz. She whirls on him. "This is not a congratulatory matter, Fitz. We should not be congratulating her on carrying a monster's child."

"The baby won't be anything like Ward," Skye says in a slightly shaky voice. "I won't let them turn out like him."

Simmons shakes her head. "Unfortunately, that's out of your control. Grant Ward is an evil man, and that will most likely be passed down to any offspring of his, including the one you're carrying. If you're really choosing to go through with this, then I suggest we all take precautions for the day it turns on us all and follows the same path as its father."

Skye's left standing with a gaping mouth, hot tears stinging at her eyes as if she'd just been slapped.

"Alright, I think we're done here," Trip speaks up, grabbing Skye by the shoulders and guiding her out of the lab. Her head is numb as she walks, the tears continuing to fall.

"I get that she's upset," Trip says to her once they're out of earshot of the lab. "But that was uncalled for. People aren't born evil." He leads her into the lounge and gets her to sit on the couch. "Hey, you okay?"

Skye's lower lip trembles and then she's sobbing, more tears trailing down her face as she hugs her knees to her chest and leans back into the couch.

Trip rushes to sit next to her and pull her into his arms. "Hey hey hey, shh. I've got you. Just let it out. I've got you." He continues to hold her as she cries.

Once she's managed to get all the crying and tears out, Skye lets go of her legs and relaxes into Trip's hold, resting one of her hands over her stomach in a protective nature.

"I knew she'd be mad," she says quietly after a moment. "But I didn't think she'd verbally attack the baby like that."

"Which was completely uncalled for," Trip reminds her. "That baby has done nothing wrong. She's just upset because Ward's the father and the guy's done a lot of bad stuff."

"What's he going to say if I tell him?" she wonders aloud. "If I actually decide to tell him, will he react as badly as Simmons did? He told me at Providence, he said that he's not a good person. How will feel about having created another human being? Is he going to hate his own kid because he doesn't like who he is himself? I don't think I'm ready to find that out yet."

"So don't," Trip tells her.

"I haven't seen him since he got locked up. I'm just...I'm afraid," she admits. "The thought of telling him completely terrifies me."

"So don't tell him yet," Trip suggests again. "Just wait it out a bit. Especially so you can recover from today first."

She nods, her eyes slowly drooping and a yawn escaping. "You're right. I'm just...I'm gonna lay here for a bit. If that's okay."

He smiles. "That's perfectly okay. I told you I'm here for whatever you need. Even if that includes being a human pillow on the concrete so you can get some shut eye."

"You're the best, Trip," she slurs out in her half-asleep state. "Thank you."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So? What did you think? Let me know in a review down below. I'd love to hear your thoughts.
> 
> I know Ward hasn't shown up yet, but you can't really expect it to be so easy, can you? He will appear, I promise. But this is a slow burn Skyeward fic, so be patient.
> 
> Also, for those who were around last year, you're hopefully familiar with my annual New Year's Eve Q&A video that I post on YouTube. If you're interested, you can send me questions to answer in that video. :)
> 
> Until next time,  
> Jellybean96 out!


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey babes! Happy almost 2019! Hope you're all doing well and enjoying some time off with your loved ones. I realize it's been a little while since I've updated this story, but I've been busy with work, and then my sister and her husband were in town for the holiday. But I'm here now to update.
> 
> Enjoy!

Covering her mouth as she lets out a heavy yawn, Skye makes her way down the hall away from her bedroom and toward the lab. It's been a few days since she told FitzSimmons the news about her baby and she really wants to try and smooth things over with the Brit as best she can. She hoped that giving the other woman a few days to process the news might help things. She also needed a few days to herself to calm down after her meltdown from Simmons' reaction.

Reaching the lab, her brows furrow in confusion when she sees Fitz standing at the far end of the lab, mumbling to himself and fumbling around with different pieces of small machinery. And he's alone.

The fact that he's alone actually unsettles her a little. He's never alone. Ever since he woke up, Simmons has always been right at his side, helping him recover from everything that happened.

"Hey," she says, reaching a hand out to a lab assistant passing by. "Do you know where Simmons is? She never leaves Fitz's side."

The man shakes his head. "Sorry. I don't. She just disappeared the other day. She was upset about something and then she just left. No one knows where she went."

She gives him a small smile. "Oh, okay, thanks."

"No problem."

Casting one more glance in Fitz's direction, she lets out a heavy sigh and turns away from the sad sight. How could Simmons just leave him alone like that? He needs her. She's his best friend. Why would she just leave him high and dry when he probably needs her more now than he ever has before?

"Skye."

Turning her head, she gives a tight smile when she finds Coulson slowly approaching her. "Coulson, hey."

"Hi. How are you feeling?"

"Okay. Still a little nauseous more than anything else, but it comes and goes."

He nods once. "Right. Well, I hope you get over that quickly."

"Me too. And hey," she says before he can get too far away. "Have you seen Simmons anywhere? One of the lab assistants said that she basically disappeared the other day. Do you know where she is? I really wanted to talk to her."

"Uh...Agent Simmons is...unavailable at the moment."

Her brows furrow. "Do you know where she is that makes her so unavailable?"

"I'm afraid I can't tell you much more than that."

"Is it above my pay grade?" she questions with a hint of sarcasm in her tone.

"Something like that," Coulson says with a small nod.

"Do you know why she left?"

"All I can tell you is that she came to me a few days ago in a pretty bad mood and said she needed to get away for awhile."

Gears start to turn in her head as she begins putting the pieces together with the information she got from the assistant and now Coulson. "Did she say why she was in such a bad mood?" she asks after swallowing the building lump in her throat.

Coulson shakes his head. "She didn't. And I figured it'd be better if I didn't pry. If she wanted to tell me then she would."

Skye nods, her heart starting to race beneath her chest. "Right. Uh, thanks."

Coulson gives her a tiny hint of a smile before turning and continuing down the hallway.

As he leaves, she backs up against the wall closest to her and slides down until she's sitting on the ground, her knees pulled to her chest.

"It's all my fault," she mumbles when everything clicks into place in her head. Simmons left a few days ago. Right after she told her about the pregnancy. Simmons was upset that Ward is the father. Simmons was in a bad mood when she left. It all makes sense. It's all her fault. She's the reason why Simmons left.  _Her baby_ is the reason why Simmons left.

"She's gone and it's all my fault."

The dam breaks, once again, and tears begin falling from her eyes, trailing down her cheeks and landing on the fabric of her pants. Her body shakes as she cries. She would hate for anyone to see her in a mess like this, but she can't find the energy to move.

A familiar warmth encircles her a moment later and she looks up to find a blurry Trip sitting next to her, his arms wrapped securely around her. A blurry Fitz is standing just behind the man, a concerned frown on his face as he mumbles and rubs at his left hand.

"Hey, you okay?" Trip asks her.

She shakes her head as more tears escape. "She left because of me. Because of my baby. My baby is tearing this team apart, Trip. How is it possible that an innocent little baby can cause such a huge disruption inside the team?"

"P-people are idiots," Fitz speaks up then.

She looks up at him and smiles. "Yeah, they totally are." She looks back at Trip. "But was keeping this baby really a good idea if it's just going to drive the team apart?"

"Don't talk like that," Trip tells her. "You are your own person and if other people can't handle the fact that you're going to be having a baby, then that's their problem."

"It's not the fact that I'm going to have a baby, Trip, it's the fact of who the father is. People don't like the fact that I was with Ward and that this is his baby. But what they don't seem to understand is that it happened before we knew he was Hydra, before he turned on us. This baby comes from that good part of Ward, however small it actually is."

Trip nods. "And I believe that, completely. So don't listen to what anyone else says, okay? You've still got me, just like I promised. And I'm pretty sure Fitz is down for the task of being here for whatever you need."

"Um, yeah," Fitz answers awkwardly, shifting on his feet.

She smiles up at both of them. "Thanks, guys. Really."

"It's no problem," Trip tells her. "Now why don't you go get yourself cleaned up a little in your room then come and find me in the lounge. I'll make the three of us something for breakfast since I'm pretty sure Fitz hasn't eaten anything yet."

Fitz opens and closes his mouth, gesturing behind him. "Been working."

Trip chuckles. "Exactly, man. You need to eat something." He turns back to Skye and rubs her back soothingly for a moment. "You gonna be alright if I go to the lounge right now?"

She breathes in deeply and nods. "Yeah, thanks."

"Alright. See you in a bit, then." He stands from his spot and gently grabs Fitz by the shoulder, guiding the man down the hallway toward the lounge, despite the protests of needing to work.

Skye smiles after the two, glad that she has at least two people in her corner through all of this. Neither of them seems to care too much about what she did. And it's not like she can go back and change it. And she really wouldn't if given the opportunity. She loves her baby. She doesn't regret what she did. Or who she did it with. She just wishes circumstances were different.

.

.

.

Running a hand through her hair as she yawns, she trudges into the lounge and heads straight for the kitchenette, her hands reaching immediately for the coffee pot.

It's snatched off the counter before she can grab it and her head whips up to find Trip standing next to her with the coffee pot in one hand, held high above his head.

"That's rude," she says, narrowing her eyes at him. "You're using my height against me, and I don't appreciate that."

"You're pregnant, Skye. I'm pretty sure coffee is a big N-O, for pregnant women."

"And I did my own research, thank you very much, and one cup a day is alright to have. So please do not deny me this sweet nectar that I need to function in the morning."

Trip eyes her carefully before slowly lowering the coffee pot back onto the counter. "One cup."

She nods, already reaching for a mug from one of the cupboards. "I know. Don't worry. The last thing I want to do is mess up my child, so I won't do anything purposefully to do that."

"So you're not torn anymore on if you should keep the little one or not?" he asks her carefully.

She takes a deep breath and nods, taking a small sip from her coffee. "I'm definitely keeping it. I've always known that. I just...I don't know. I guess I was worried. But I love my baby, Trip, and I can't even imagine getting rid of him or her. This baby is its own person, they're not their father. I love them and I'm going to raise them right."

"Well, I'm glad to hear you're not getting rid of it anytime soon."

"You are?"

He nods. "Absolutely. I've always wanted to be an uncle. This is my chance."

"Ah, right." She takes another sip from coffee. "Hey, you busy right now?"

"Uh, I was gonna go work out for a bit. Did you need something?"

She shakes her head. "Not really. I've just been getting kinda bored lately. Since I told Coulson about the baby he hasn't been having me do anything for missions. I don't mind not going into the field, but it's like he thinks I'll hurt myself or the baby somehow if he so much as asks me to hack into something."

"I'm sure he's just looking out for you."

"Yeah, maybe…" her voice trails off, her brows furrowing when she spots a few agents walking past the lounge doorway, peering inside and then whispering before walking away. She looks back at Trip. "It's just a little frustrating. I mean, the whole reason I joined this team in the first place was because of my skills as a hacker. And now he doesn't even want me to do that anymore."

"Then maybe you should talk to him."

"He's been avoiding me."

"Would you like me to talk to him for you?"

She sighs. "No, thanks. That's okay." She breathes in deeply. "So, you're going to go workout. Mind if I come and watch so I'm not completely bored out of my mind for a few hours?"

"Sure you don't want to work out with me?"

Her nose scrunches up. "I'm too exhausted to work out."

"Didn't you just wake up?"

She quirks a brow. "Your point?"

He shakes his head. "Nevermind. Yeah, you can come with me."

"Cool." She makes sure she has a secure hold on her coffee and then follows Trip out of the lounge and through the base toward the gym.

As they walk, she can't help but feel the eyes from various other agents practically glued to her backside. Then the quiet, crispness of whispered voices comes. She glances out the corner of her eyes to see a few agents she doesn't recognize standing along the wall, huddled together as they watch her and whisper.

Tears spring unwillingly to her eyes and she takes a small step closer to Trip. They're nearly at the gym, she can survive a bit more of a walk.

Unfortunately, once they reach the gym, none of the staring and whispering stops there. As soon as they step foot inside, the few people who are already in there stop what they're doing and look directly at her. Then the whispering starts.

Trip sighs and turns to face Skye. "I am so sorry about this, girl." He gently grabs her arm and pulls her back out into the hallway. "I didn't want to have to tell you this. But when Simmons left, she may have let it slip to a few people about you being pregnant with Ward's baby. And obviously everyone here hates him, and Simmons didn't help matters much by talking so harshly about him and your baby. I was hoping everyone would be over the whispered comments by now. Guess I was wrong."

"It's fine," she tells Trip, fighting to keep her tears at bay. That's the last thing she needs right now. "It just sucks, you know? They haven't met my baby yet but they're already thinking the worst about them."

"They're all just pigheaded," Trip tells her. "Can't think for themselves."

"Do you know where Simmons went?" she asks him. "Coulson wouldn't tell me and I don't think anyone else would know. Fitz might, but I don't want to open up that wound for him."

Trip takes a deep breath and places both of his hands on her shoulders. "Listen, girl, you need to stop worrying about Simmons, alright? She was angry and she left. It's as simple as that. All that you should be focusing on right now is staying healthy, for you and your baby. You don't need to be stressing out about stuff that doesn't matter."

She sighs, her shoulders sagging. "Yeah, I guess you're right. And apparently the cat's out of the bag now, so there's no use in trying to hide anything anymore."

Trip nods. "Exactly. You wear that eventual baby belly with pride, girl. You're working hard to grow an actual human inside you. People should be worshipping you, not criticizing you."

She smiles and quickly wipes at her eyes. "You're going to make me cry, you jerk."

He chuckles. "You good now?"

She takes a deep breath and nods. "Yeah, I think I'm good. I just really want everything with the pregnancy and the baby to go well. I don't want there to be any unnecessary hiccups along the way. I just want a smooth, easy ride."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So? What did you think? Let me know in a review down below. I'd love to hear your thoughts.
> 
> Also, tomorrow is New Year's Eve, which means I'll be doing another Q&A video on my YouTube channel. So if there's anything you guys have ever wanted to know about me, or my writing, feel free to ask. :)


	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey babes! Back again with a new chapter for ya! Hope everyone's having a pretty good 2019 so far.
> 
> Enjoy!

Before she knows it, she's at the end of her second month. From the moment she really came to terms with the fact that Simmons left most likely because of her baby, Skye's been doing everything she can to focus solely on herself and her baby. The last thing she wants is something terrible happening because she's overly stressed about pointless matters.

"Trip!" she calls out when she sees her friend inside the lab with Fitz, having a conversation with the engineer as he works.

They both turn toward her and smile, Fitz setting down his latest project while Trip stands from the stool he'd been using.

She immediately engulfs Trip in a hug when she gets to him, her arms wrapped around him tightly. "Oh, I missed you. Where have you been recently?"

"Coulson had me on a recon mission that went a little longer than expected," he tells her when they pull from the hug. "Just got back a few hours ago."

"Well, this is perfect, then. Because I have something I want to show you." She digs into the pocket of the hoodie she's wearing, pulling out a small, folded piece of photo paper. "You know how I've been so worked up lately, so other things have tended to slip my mind? One of those things was having an actual check up to make sure the baby's alright."

"So I take it you did that while I was away. Otherwise, I'm assuming that as the favorite uncle I would have been there."

"Who says you'll be the favorite?" Fitz asks, his brows furrowed.

"That's not important right now," Skye interrupts the two men. "What is important, is that while I was having a checkup, I had my very first ultrasound, and well...here." She unfolds the photo paper and holds it out to them, biting her lip in between her teeth as she watches them examine the photo.

"Um, what..what is it?" Fitz asks cautiously, his head tilting from side to side slowly.

"Dude, that's the baby," Trip tells him.

"It is?"

"Of course it is," Skye says. "Why else would I be showing you a grainy black and white photo?"

Fitz shrugs. "I don't know."

"Well that's my baby," she says with a giddy smile. "That little gray blob is my little baby." She breathes in deeply, her hands resting on her stomach underneath of the hoodie. "About seven more months until they're here and I can hold him or her in my arms."

"You don't know if it's a boy or girl yet?" Trip asks, handing the sonogram back to her.

She takes the photo and folds it again, sliding it back into her pocket. "No, I don't. Abby said I won't be able to find that out for a little while longer."

"Who's Abby?"

"She's the one who did the checkup and ultrasound for me. No one else really seemed to be willing to do it when I asked, so Abby stepped forward."

"She doesn't have a problem with who the baby's father is?"

Skye shrugs. "She said it didn't matter to her. She never knew him, doesn't know his history. Said that all that matters to her is making sure my baby is healthy. And that's all I care about too."

"And we both feel the same way," Trip assures her, gesturing between himself and Fitz. "We all want that baby to be as happy and healthy as possible when they get here."

"Well, as the actual mother, I think I want it way more than you guys do," she tells them with a small smile. "I appreciate you guys caring so much, though."

"Of course we care, girl. You'd have to be a crazy person to think we wouldn't."

"Yeah, I know, I guess it's just a little strange because I've never had someone who cares about me so much and gosh, here come the tears." She quickly wipes at her eyes and takes a few deep breaths, preventing any tears from falling.

"You good?" Trip asks.

She nods. "Yeah. Hormones."

"Ah. Well, I can assure you that we most definitely do ca—"

"Skye."

Turning away from her friends, Skye's stomach flips a little when she sees Coulson standing in the doorway to the lab, a stern expression on his face.

She swallows thickly. "Coulson. What are you doing here?"

"I came to find you, actually. May I have a word?" he asks, gesturing to the hallway behind him.

She glances at Fitz and Trip, both who give her nods of encouragement, and then turns back to Coulson. "Uh, sure. Let's talk."

"Great. Let's talk out here."

She casts one more glance back at Fitz and Trip before following Coulson out of the lab and into the hallway. They walk a little ways away from the lab, finding an empty alcove.

"So, what's up?" she asks, feeling awkward trying to talk to the man. He's been avoiding her for nearly a month and she doesn't know how to react properly. Part of her wants to scream and yell at him and maybe hit him a little. Another, more rational, part of her wants to hear him out and get his perspective on things. And then there's the third part that doesn't care too much about what he has to say and would rather be curled up in bed eating ice cream while watching cheesy rom-coms she illegally downloaded to her laptop.

"I visited Ward today."

Her heart sinks. She hasn't thought about him in a month, not since she decided to focus on herself and her baby and not worry about anything else.

"You did."

He nods. "Yes. I've been visiting him every week this month, sometimes twice a week, hoping that he'll decide to cooperate and share any knowledge he has on Hydra with us."

"And I take it those trips didn't go so well."

"They didn't. He never spoke a word to me when he saw me. However, when I spoke to him today, he told me that he'd share whatever information we wanted."

"That's good. But I'm still not seeing why you needed to tell me this. Why not share it with May since she's your number two?"

"Ward only agreed to share the information if you're the one who receives it. He'll only talk to you, no one else."

"No."

He sighs. "Skye…"

"I said no, Coulson." She subconsciously places a hand on her stomach. "I can't face him. Not yet. I haven't thought about him in a month, I need some more time to wrap my head around things before I even consider talking to him, especially because I haven't decided if I'm actually going to tell him about the baby or not. Also, I don't think you'd want to risk me throwing up down in Vault D where it'll be a disgusting job for whoever has to clean it up."

Coulson nods. "Right. I understand that, and I'm not going to force you to do anything you don't want to do. But if what he has to say is crucial in our mission to take down Hydra, it's only a matter of time before you'll have to go down there and talk to him."

"I know. I just...I need some time. I need to figure some things out."

"That's fine, take however long you may need. If you do decide to tell him about the...baby, there's no way to know for sure how he'll react, you should prepare yourself for whatever the outcome will be. For your sake, I hope it won't be too bad."

"Yeah, me too," she says with a tight smile, watching as Coulson walks away from her. She lets out a heavy sigh and rubs her hand over her stomach. "You understand why I want to wait, right, kiddo?" she asks her stomach. "Part of me wants to tell him about you, but the other part is scared of what he might do. I don't want to lose you. I can't lose you."

.

.

.

Over the next couple of weeks, Skye spends all of her time focusing on her health and the health of her baby. She follows through on Abby's suggestions of how to have the healthiest pregnancy that she can, while also indulging herself every once in a while in the not-so-healthy choices.

As the weeks pass, occasionally her mind wanders to the basement vault and the man housed within. It's usually when she's lying in bed at night, with only her thoughts for company, and she has all the time it takes for her to fall asleep to think about her situation.

She hasn't voiced her concerns lately to Trip or Fitz, but she knows that they'll completely back her in whatever she decides to do. They're the only two she knows are truly supporting her.

Coulson has come around in a certain sense in the fact that he isn't avoiding her anymore. But he still doesn't bring up the subject of the baby.

May's never been very social, so she's not surprised by the distance she receives from the older woman. It hurts, but she was expecting it.

Obviously, Simmons doesn't support her, seeing as she's nowhere to be found and no one knows when or if she'll be back.

Sure, she has Abby's support as well, but she only just recently met the woman and doesn't have as close a relationship with her as she does the others from her team.

The one person she's unsure of, however, is the very man behind her current situation. There's a part of her that still cares about a part of him, the part that she was with.

It's one of her many sleepless nights, when thoughts of her baby and her ex-something constantly invade her mind.

Glancing at the clock on the bedside table, she lets out a sigh and forces herself to get out of her bed. Mainly because she knows it's not good for her to spend all day in her bed right now, but also because she really has to pee.

Moving into the adjoining bathroom, she takes a moment to relieve herself and clean up before staring at her reflection in the mirror.

She runs a hand through her messy bed hair before letting it fall to her shirt covered stomach. Her brows furrow instantly at the unfamiliar feeling beneath her fingers.

Glancing down, she lifts the hem of her shirt and gasps at the small curve to the lower part of her belly. Tears immediately fill her eyes and she caresses the bump.

"Hey, in there," she says. "Wow. You're really, really in there."

Looking back at the mirror, she grins before dropping her shirt and exiting her room, making a beeline for the lab as fast as she can.

"Trip! Fitz!" she shouts excitedly once she reaches the lab, heading straight for the back. If Trip isn't on a mission, he can usually be found hanging out in the lab with Fitz, and that thought alone makes her smile.

"Hey, girl, what's got you so cheery?" Trip asks her, turning from the table in front of him.

"I'm showing," she says with a grin.

Trip smiles to match her own. "Really? Let me see."

She pulls up the hem of her shirt and turns to the side, raising one hand to cradle the underside of the tiny baby bump just above the hem of her pants. "Proof."

"Oh, wow," Trip says. "That's awesome, girl."

"Thanks." She looks over at the engineer. "Fitz, did you see? I've got a baby bump!"

"Um, yeah, I saw. Congrats."

"Thanks." She drops her shirt and breathes out. "This is so exciting. I'm almost into my second trimester, things are going great, and I've got a baby bump."

"Well, that's pretty awesome," Trip tells her.

"Yeah, it is." She takes a deep breath, the smile on her face faltering.

Trip's brows furrow. "What is it?"

"Uh, nothing, I just...I made a decision."

"About?"

She takes a deep breath. "Last month, when Coulson came wanting to talk to me, he told me that Ward agreed to give up information he has on Hydra, but that he'd only give it up if I'm the one to go down to Vault D and talk to him."

"Whoa. Really?"

She nods her head. "Yeah."

"Damn, girl."

"I know. I told Coulson I needed some time to think over some things, but I think I've waited long enough. I'm going to go down there and talk to him, and I'm going to tell him about the baby. And now that I'm showing, it just seems right to tell him. If there's actual proof then he can't deny it."

Trip and Fitz are both quiet as they take in the information from their friend. Skye waits with bated breath, hoping they won't try to talk her out of this. Deep down she knows that they won't, that they're behind her one hundred percent, but there's still that small inkling of worry.

"Alright," Trip says with a slow nod of his head. "I'm coming with you."

Skye shakes her head. "No, Trip. I appreciate the offer and your willingness, I really do, but this is something I need to do. Alone. I have to talk to him alone."

"Are you sure?"

She takes a deep breath and drops her shoulders. "Nope."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So? What did you think? Let me know in a review down below. I'd love to hear your thoughts.
> 
> Until next time,  
> Jellybean96 out!


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey babes! Back again with a new chapter for you! And it's the one that most, if not all, of you have been waiting for. It's probably not going to go as most of you hope it will, but I will not apologize for all the angst. It needs to happen. Especially with where these two are at in their 'relationship'.
> 
> So brace yourselves.
> 
> And enjoy.

Pacing the length of his cell over and over, he tilts his head back to stare up at the too familiar ceiling. Saying he's bored would be a massive understatement. He's been in situations before where he's had no form of a way to entertain himself, but he always managed just fine.

But the fact that he knows that everyone he cares about is above him living out their lives as normal, that's what really does him in. He can't stand not knowing what they're doing, how they are, how much better off they are without him. He knows they're all better off without him. He's done too much damage. He doesn't blame them for hating him. But they don't understand the situation he was in. It's not like it was an easy choice for him. He couldn't just let John die.

A quiet buzzing pulls him out of his thoughts and he turns to face the opaque screen separating him from the rest of the world. At least, separating him from the doorway to the rest of the world.

Seconds later, the barrier goes clear and his breath catches in his throat when he sees her standing in front of him. He opens and closes his mouth a few times, unsure of what exactly to say to her. He never thought he'd see her again. He had hope, but not much of it.

"Coulson said you wanted to talk."

He swallows and nods. "Yeah. I'm not sure how much time has passed since I told him I wanted to talk. But I know it's been a while. What took so long? Are you okay?" His eyes rack down her body, doing a mental examination, taking note of everything, making sure she's okay.

His eyes stop when he reaches her midsection and his breath catches in his throat again. No. It can't be. He might not have noticed it if he hadn't been trained to notice everything around him. It's not very noticeable, but it's there.

"Guess the cat's out of the bag, then," he hears her say. "I'm pregnant, Ward. And it's yours, obviously."

He tears his eyes away from her stomach, its rounded shape enhanced by the tight fitting shirt she's wearing, and looks her in the eyes. He shakes his head and takes a small step back. "No. You're lying. You're just...you're trying to trick me, to use this as leverage when I already said I'd tell you what you want to know. So why are you trying to trick me?" he asks, his voice rising as he moves closer to the barrier. It glows as he gets his face as close to hers as he can. "Why are you lying to me?" he asks through gritted teeth. "This isn't funny."

Silence fills the space around them and he watches her reaction. Nothing. Her face is stone as she stares back at him, though there's a slight tick to her jaw.

A minute later, she spins on her heel and leaves the room, her heels hitting hard against the staircase. The slamming of the door echoes down into his cell and his jaw clenches.

"Damn it!"

He turns and races toward the back wall, slamming his fist into the structure out of frustration. His breathing is heavy as he steps back from the wall. He doesn't have to look at his hand to know he did serious damage. He's seen and inflicted enough injuries to know that he's going to need to get it fixed soon before there's any permanent damage.

Minutes later, a loud slamming alerts him to the door having been opened and closed again. Turning toward the barrier, he lets out a sigh of relief when he sees Skye approaching again, a small piece of paper clutched in one hand. He opens his mouth to speak but stops when he sees the daggers she's sending him with her eyes.

She taps harshly on the tablet in her hand and slides the paper through the small opening at the bottom of the barrier before leaving the room again without another word.

He reaches down to grab the paper, being careful not to jostle his injured hand any more than is necessary. Holding the paper in his uninjured hand, he examines the grainy black and white image with furrowed brows, trying his best to decipher what exactly it is.

The gears slowly start to turn in his head and his mind flashes back to when his mother was pregnant with his younger brother and brought home images similar to this to show off to anyone she could.

If Skye really was telling the truth, then she really is pregnant with his child, and the image in his hand is further proof of that. He can't make out any distinct features, but from what he remembers of his mother's ultrasound photos, this is most definitely a grainy image of a baby. His baby. His baby with Skye. His baby with Skye that he might never get to see.

There's no way she's going to let him around this child. Not after everything that he's done. He can't say he blames her. He doesn't know the first thing about how to raise a child properly. She probably thinks he'll corrupt the child before its first birthday.

No, there's no way she'll let him see his child. And with him being locked up in Vault D, there was zero chance of him ever finding out about his child if she never came down to see him like she just did. This is just another way SHIELD came up with to torture him. They knew he could withstand any kind of physical torture they threw at him, so they chose instead to mess with his head.

And now that he knows about his kid, they can use it over him, use his kid as leverage over him for whatever they need. But he already said he'd give them what they want, so why are they doing this to him?

He didn't know this was going to happen when he and Skye slept together. He didn't know that she would end up pregnant. Sure, in the far recesses of his mind he knew it could be a possibility, he's not a complete idiot. He just assumed Skye was covered on that front because he certainly didn't plan for any protection on his end. He's an idiot for just assuming. John taught him better than to assume things are going to work out. He was taught to plan for everything. But this time he didn't.

And now he's going to be a father and will never get to see his kid because everyone hates him for what he did and will never forgive him. No matter how much he regrets ruining everything they all had, it's not enough for any of them to change their minds. He's never going to get the chance to be a dad.

Even if he did have the chance, it's not like he'd even know what to do. He never exactly had a model for 'dad of the year' growing up. He just doesn't want his child to grow up thinking their own father never loved them. He's sure he'd love his child, especially if they took mainly after Skye. He sees a little girl that's the spitting image of her, right down to the big brown eyes and the feisty attitude. He knows without a doubt that he'd love that child. But they'll never know the love of a father.

He knows Skye will have the whole team behind her, to love and help care for their child, but it's not the same as that of the love of a father. That kind of love can't be manufactured. Or so he thinks. He's never actually felt the love of a father either.

But if there's one thing that he knows, it's that he could love his child so much that they would never doubt for a second that he'd do anything and everything for them.

He needs to see his kid. He needs to talk to someone. He needs to tell someone.

"Anyone," he mutters under his breath. "Need to talk to someone."

Glancing around, he tries to figure out how to contact someone, to have someone come down so he can talk to them. That's when he notices the stack of metal food trays sitting just inside the barrier to his cell.

How long has been in his cell?

A small aching slowly works its way up his arm and he looks down at his hand to see it wrapped and splinted.

When did that happen? And who did it? Surely it can't have been Simmons. She hates his guts and would have rather killed him than fixed up his hand.

Hearing the door opening, he twists toward the barrier and waits for something, anything to happen. The barrier never goes clear, but a tray of food is slid through the small compartment at the bottom.

"I want to speak to Coulson," he says as soon as the slot opens. "As soon as possible. Please."

There's a moment of hesitation and then the slot closes, leaving him alone with his thoughts once again.

He sighs, setting aside the ultrasound photo he'd been holding onto as he moves toward the tray. He figures he needs to eat something. Judging by the trays stacked up, it's been a while since he's had what resembles a decent meal.

He sits back on his bed and stares at the ultrasound photo as he eats, thinking of all the possible ways his child could turn out. He would prefer anything except for the child being anything like him. Everyone would be better off that way, including his child.

"I'll tell you," he speaks up sometime later, knowing that Coulson's standing on the other side of the barrier. Since the agent who brought him his food left he's made sure to stay as aware of his surroundings as possible, to not get lost in his own head again.

He heard the door open, the echo of the man's shoes against the stairs, the slight buzzing as the barrier changed, even the rubbing of fabric as the man shifted on his feet. SHIELD always said he was one of their best for a reason.

"Tell me what?" he hears Coulson ask.

"Everything. I'll tell you everything you want to know."

"And why would you do that?"

He chooses that moment to look up at the man who used to consider him a friend. "Skye's pregnant," he says. "She's having my child and I want to be there for the both of them in whatever way that I can. But I can't do that if I'm locked up in here."

He watches as Coulson processes through his unspoken request. Well, it was spoken, just not in so many exact words.

"I'll have to take some time to think about it," Coulson tells him and his heart sinks a little. "This is a delicate situation and needs to be dealt with accordingly. I'll come back when I've come to a decision."

He swallows thickly and nods. "Okay. I understand."

He watches as Coulson stands there for another moment, just watching him, before turning and leaving the room.

The barrier goes opaque and he sighs, falling back onto his bed.

Picking up the ultrasound photo once again, he stares at it as he lies down against his pillow, thoughts of his child and the woman carrying said child running through his head.

What he wouldn't give to just see the both of them, to hold them in his arms and promise them so many things that he never thought he'd ever get to promise. He just wants to protect them and keep them safe.

He has a feeling Skye's going to keep the baby, otherwise, she wouldn't have told him in the first place. And he knows she'll have the rest of the team behind her, they love her.

The one thing he's unsure of is where exactly he fits into the picture. If he does get let out, will she accept him into her and their child's life? Or will he just have to stand by on the sidelines and watch as she raises their child without him, becoming a vague memory in their child's mind?

For right now, it's just a waiting game. And he hates waiting. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So? What did you think? Let me know in a review down below. I'd love to hear your thoughts.
> 
> Until next time,  
> Jellybean96 out!


	9. Chapter 9

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey babes! Back again with a new chapter for ya! We're back on Skye's perspective with this chapter. But don't worry, the chapter after this will be from Ward's perspective again. Now that we've introduced Ward, I'm going to be switching between his and Skye's perspectives periodically. That way you get both sides of things.
> 
> Enjoy!

As much as she's tried not to, and she really has tried, he's been one of the only things occupying the forefront of her mind since she saw him. His reaction to her pregnancy honestly hurt her a lot more than she thought it would, the fact that he thought she'd lie about something like that just to hold it over him. She thought he knew her better than that. But apparently, that's another thing that was never true.

"Hey, what's going on in your head over there?"

She looks up from the floor to see Trip watching her with concern in his eyes. She's been spending as much time as possible with Trip and Fitz lately, not wanting to be as alone as she felt since Ward accused her of lying about their baby.

"Nothing much," she tells Trip with a small shrug. "Just uh...just thinking."

"About?" he prods gently.

She sighs. "Ward's reaction to the baby."

Trip nods. "Ah. Still hung up on that, then."

"I can't help it, Trip. His first reaction was to think that I was lying about being pregnant. I would never lie about something like this. I may hate him right now, but lying about being pregnant is just going too far."

"I know that. And I'm sure somewhere in his head he knows that too. But his entire life has been flipped around and ripped away and he probably doesn't know what to believe anymore. I'm not saying Garrett was a good guy or anything close to it, but to Ward, he was everything. From what I saw when Garrett was my SO, Ward pretty much worshipped the guy, never questioned him and always did what Garrett told him to do. So imagine having someone like that in your life, only to have them ripped away from you in a second and you no longer have someone telling you what to do."

"I'd be thrilled," she says.

"Not if it was all you knew. You'd be confused. Probably doubting everything you know and that anyone's ever told you. I'm not making excuses for Ward, but just trying to help you understand a little better what he might be going through."

Her brows furrow. "Why do you sound like his biggest advocate right now? I thought you hated him for what he did, too? Your grandfather was a part of this organization from the beginning, it's your family's legacy."

"Yeah, it is. And I'm not really advocating for Ward, just trying to be a decent human like my nana taught me to be and see things from all sides instead of just my own."

She tilts her head as she thinks about his words. She's been seeing things pretty one-sided too. But she has a baby to think about now, and can't be fantasizing about the what-if's when she knows that Ward's done horrible things. She can't risk her baby's life on the small chance that Ward might not be all that bad.

"Skye."

Pulling out of her own thoughts, she finds Coulson standing a few feet away from her, his eyes flitting between her, Fitz, and Trip.

"Coulson. What's up?"

"Can I speak with you for a moment?" he asks, gesturing behind him to the door.

"We can talk here," she tells him, sitting up straighter in her seat, one hand moving to her lower back.

Coulson nods. "Alright. Well, I spoke to Ward a few hours ago."

Her breath catches. "You did?"

"Yes. You told him you're...pregnant."

She nods. "I did. What does that have to do with you talking to him?"

"He told me that he wants the chance to be here for you and your child however you let him, that he wants the chance to be a father, so he's willing to cooperate, even if you're not the one receiving the information that he has."

A few small flutters in her abdomen has her other hand landing there and rubbing gently to ease the movements.

"I don't know," she says to Coulson. "I don't know if I really want him around me or the baby right now. I just...there's a small part of me that thinks this is going to backfire on us if we let him out."

"He will be closely monitored," Coulson assures her. "I thought a lot about this, and I've come to the conclusion that if we decide to let him out, he'll wear a monitoring anklet so we always know where he is."

She breathes in deeply. "Well, ultimately, the choice is up to you, you're the Director. What you say goes, and we all have to live with that. The only thing I can tell you for certain is that I don't want him anywhere near me, and I still don't know if I even should have told him the truth."

"Maybe you should consider talking to him again," Coulson suggests. "Find out what he's willing to do to be with your child. Maybe it'll be good for us to know how far he's willing to go. We can use that."

Skye shakes her head. "I can't. Not yet. Maybe not ever. It's barely been two weeks, Coulson. I can't go see him again."

Coulson nods. "That's fine, I understand. Take your time, I don't want to push you."

"Thank you. I just...it's not an easy position to be in."

"I know. I'll let you think some more. Come and find me when you've come to a decision."

"I will. Thanks."

Coulson gives her a tight smile and small nod of his head before turning and leaving the room.

"What are you going to do?" Fitz asks her and she turns to her friends, almost having forgotten they were there the whole time.

She breathes in deeply. "I have absolutely no idea."

.

.

.

Making her way down the hallway with a determined kick in her step, she doesn't let anything get in her way as she walks. She spent the last few days thinking over the decision Coulson left her with. He's the Director, he should be the one making this decision, not her. But because he's the father of her unborn child, apparently she's supposed to decide if Ward gets let out of his prison or not. And it was not an easy decision to make.

Of course, there are pros and cons to either side of the decision and she weighed them all very heavily. She got some input from Fitz and Trip after Coulson left, but it still didn't do much to help her mind decide. She even went to Abby, to ask the older woman's opinion, but she wasn't of much help either, seeing as she doesn't know Ward as well and therefore can't give as informed of an opinion.

She stressed out over the whole issue, and the fact that she was stressed just stressed her out even more. All the fluttering in her belly didn't do much to help either. It would just bring her thoughts back around to her baby and if they would benefit more from having their father completely out of their life or present for everything and to watch them grow up, despite what kind of man he is.

She doesn't think she's ever made a more difficult decision in her entire life.

Approaching the office door, she hits against the glass window with her knuckle, waiting for a response from the other side as she rocks back on her heels.

"Come in."

Pushing the door open, she steps inside and then closes the door behind her, biting her lip between her teeth as she moves closer to the desk.

"Skye," Coulson says as he looks up from the documents in front of him. "I think I know the reason behind this visit. I take it you've made a decision."

She nods. "I have."

"And?"

She takes a deep breath. "And...it's okay if you let him out."

"It is."

"Yes. I've thought a lot about this...and went back and forth a lot...and it's okay if you let him out."

"You're sure about this?"

Her voice shakes, "Yes. I grew up without a father and it sucked. I don't want my kid to deal with that too. But...I want your word that he's going to be kept on a very tight leash. I don't care when or how he's let out, I just don't want him alone with me if I can avoid it."

"I understand. The first moment he tries something, he gets locked back up in Vault D. He has to know we aren't playing around with this, that this is serious."

She nods. "That's fine. Are we done now?"

"Yes, we are."

"Great. I'm um, I'm going to go and relax for a bit. I'll talk to you later." She gives him a tight smile before turning slowly on her heel and walking out of the office, closing the door tightly behind her and leaning against the wall next to it.

She breathes in deeply through her nose, trying to calm the churning of her stomach. "I know, kiddo," she says to her stomach, one hand resting there. "I'm not too thrilled about this either, but everyone deserves a second chance, right? So maybe he does too."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So? What did you think? Let me know in a review down below. I'd love to hear your thoughts.
> 
> Until next time,  
> Jellybean96 out!


	10. Chapter 10

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey babes! Back again with a new chapter for ya! I'm so glad you guys are enjoying this story so far, but it's only just getting started. :)
> 
> Enjoy!

The sound of the door opening and closing, followed by feet on the stairs, draws his attention away from the photograph in his hands. He hasn't stopped staring at it since she gave it to him. It's still a little hard for him to believe sometimes that he's going to be a dad.

Looking toward the barrier of his cell, he finds Coulson standing on the other side again, watching him carefully with his arms crossed over his chest.

"Coulson," he says with a small nod.

The man returns the nod. "Ward. A decision has been made as to your...situation."

He sits up a little straighter but doesn't respond.

"After much deliberation, I have decided to let you out of Vault D."

His chest swells and he stands from his bed, stepping a little closer to the barrier. "You have?"

"Yes."

He lets out a relieved sigh, the tiniest hint of a smile appearing on his lips. "Thank you, Coulson. I give you my word that I will do anything you ask of me, I just want to be there for Skye and our child."

"I understand. And I appreciate your willingness to cooperate. However, what you need to understand is that this will not be a guaranteed permanent situation. You will be heavily monitored while you're out, and if you so much as put one of your toes out of line, you'll be back down here for good. Is that clear?"

He nods, swallowing. "Yes, sir."

"Good. You also have a guardian angel watching over you, because they've convinced me to have someone be brought in to speak with you. Apparently, they feel that it's necessary for you to have a professional to speak with about whatever issues you may have regarding your past and more recent events."

His jaw tightens and his hands curl into fists. "I'm not crazy."

Coulson shakes his head. "I never said that you were."

"Actually, I'm pretty sure you have. But I don't need a shrink."

"Well, then you'll have to remain down here because that's one of the stipulations of your release from Vault D."

He breathes in and out a few times, thinking it over. He doesn't really want to see a shrink, but if it's one of the stipulations of him getting to be with his son, then there's really no other choice here. He sighs. "Fine. I'll do it."

"Good. As for your living situation, I've arranged for you to have a bunk upstairs, as far from everyone else as I could get you, and you'll wear a tracking anklet so I know where you are at all times."

"That's fine, Coulson, I don't care about being monitored. Just as long as I can be there for my kid. I don't want to be an absent father. Even if I don't know how to be one, I want to be there."

"No one knows how to be a father the first time around, Ward, so I think you'll be fine. It's all a matter of trial and error, of seeing what works and what doesn't. You'll figure it out. You just need to be patient."

"Right, of course." He nods his head and looks down at the photo in his hands. Worry slips into his head, worry that he'll fall into the cycle of being a horrible father like his own was, worry that his child will only respect him out of fear like it was with Garrett.

"Ward."

He's pulled from his own thoughts and looks up. "Yes?"

"If you're ready, I'm going to take the barrier down and take you upstairs."

He folds the photo and slides it into the waistband of his pants, nodding. "I'm ready."

"Good. Step back a moment."

He takes a small step away from the barrier and waits as Coulson pushes buttons on the tablet in his hand, the barrier glowing and then disappearing a second later.

He breathes in slowly and deeply, preparing himself for this moment. He's actually being let out. He's free. In a way.

Moving forward, he takes a slow step across the barrier, stopping when he's right in front of Coulson. "I'm out."

"Yes, you are. Now follow me up to the lab and we can get your tracking anklet put on."

"Lead the way."

He waits for Coulson to move toward the stairs before he follows after him, keeping himself at a slight distance to make the man feel a little more comfortable.

They walk in silence through the hallways of the base, a couple of armed agents walking with them, probably for everyone else's safety versus his own. These people don't really care about him, from what he remembers.

Eventually, they reach the lab, and he hesitates at the door before following Coulson through to the far end of the room. He ignores the stares and whispers coming from the few other agents in the room. He doesn't need that right now.

"Ward, this is Abigail Porter, one of resident medical experts."

"Oh, I wouldn't call myself an expert," the gray-haired woman responds. "There's still a lot we don't know about the human body." She looks up at him with a kind smile. "It's nice to meet you, dear. You can just call me Abby if you like."

"Um, okay."

"Are you two going to be alright here while I check on the progress of a few projects down here?" Coulson asks.

"We'll be fine," Abby assures him. "You go and do your Director stuff." She shoos him away, the man giving him a warning look before leaving. Abby breathes in deeply and turns back to him. "Now then, let's get this tracking anklet put on you. If you could have a seat up on the bench, please."

He follows her instructions and pulls himself onto the bench, waiting for her to continue.

"So," she says as she goes about her business of checking him over, especially his hand, and getting his anklet fitted, "you must be the man who's the father of Agent Skye's baby."

He swallows thickly and nods. "I am."

"Well, it's nice to see you out and about."

"I want to be there for my baby," he tells her. "I had a father growing up, but it never felt like I did. I don't want my child growing up thinking they didn't have a father who loved them."

Abby smiles sweetly at him. "Well, that's very nice to hear. And I'm glad to see your hand is doing better. I think if we just give it a little more time in the splint you should be perfectly fine."

"Are you the one who fixed that?" he asks her. "I never noticed anyone working on it."

"You seemed pretty out of it when I came down to work on it. Good thing, though, there was no resistance on your part. Made my job much easier." She laughs quietly.

"Oh, well, thanks. Guess I really didn't think things through when I hit that wall."

"Love has a tendency to make people do irrational things."

He opens and closes his mouth a few times, his cheeks flushing as he ducks his head. He avoids eye contact with the woman the rest of the time they're in the lab as she finishes up with his tracking anklet.

"Everything all set in here?"

"Uh, yeah," he says, looking up at Coulson as he approaches their small area. "I think we're done." He looks at Abby for confirmation and she nods at him. He looks back to Coulson. "Yeah, we're done."

"Great. I can show you around the base then, let you see where everything is so you can get familiar with its layout." The man doesn't wait for any response, just turns and begins walking toward the door of the lab.

Ward flashes Abby a grateful smile before sliding off the bench and following behind Coulson. He walks at a close enough distance that he won't accidentally get lost, but not too close that the other man feels uncomfortable. Again.

As they walk, Ward listens attentively as Coulson points out the different rooms and facilities around the base, being sure to make mental notes of all the places he's not allowed in, which is pretty much all of them. Except for the common areas, and his own room, he's not really allowed anywhere else. Not that he blames the older man. If he was in his position, he wouldn't let someone like himself near the armory either.

Thankfully for him, most people are in their bunks or off doing other things, so there aren't too many people out while he's being shown around the place. He knows pretty much everyone hates him, so he doesn't want to know what any of them would do if they saw him out and walking around like a free man. But he's not free. He's still a prisoner. He's just on a leash. Like an animal.

Is that how she sees him? Is that how Skye sees him now? Is that why she's nowhere to be found? Does she even know that he's out? Does she care? Or does she see him as some kind of animal and won't actually let him near their child?

"Don't hover."

He's pulled out of his head to find Coulson standing next to him. "What?"

"I said don't hover," Coulson repeats. "And don't try to force your way into her life or that of your child's. If you want things to go well, and you want to be involved, then let her set the terms. If you screw up, you're back in the Vault."

He swallows thickly, the worry that he'll mess up now sitting right at the front of his mind. "Yeah, okay."

"Good." Coulson breathes in deeply. "I think we're done here, now. You know the lay of the land and where you're not allowed. I'll leave you to settle in."

"Uh, yeah, thanks."

Once Coulson leaves, Ward remains standing in the doorway to his room. There isn't much in his room for him to keep himself occupied, no surprise there. Other than a few changes of clothes, there isn't much there, not even a razor to keep himself cleaned up. He doesn't blame the man, though, for not giving him anything like that.

After a few minutes debating what to do with his time, he makes the brave decision to find Skye. He just wants a couple of minutes to talk to her, if she'll even give him that much.

Searching the entire base, even glancing in some of the rooms he's not allowed in, he finds her sitting alone in the common room, her laptop propped up in her lap.

As he enters the room, he's sure to make some kind of noise so he doesn't startle her, and when she looks up at him, his heart clenches at the fear evident in her eyes. He's expecting her to run away, get as far from him as possible, but she just sits there watching him.

Everything that he came up with in his head to say to her completely goes away. He's at a loss.

"Uh, you look good," he ends up saying after a long silence. "I'm glad you're doing okay. How's the baby?"

"The baby's fine," she says sharply.

He pulls his lips in tight and nods. "Good, good. Um, I'm here, you know, for whatever you need. I'm not expecting you to...but if you ever need anything, then I want you to know that I'm he—"

"I have Trip and Fitz if I need anything," she cuts him off and his heart sinks.

Everything inside starts hurting at hearing that she doesn't need or want him for anything. This is the mother of his child, he should be the one helping her, but instead, she has two other men to rely on. Men who aren't the father of her baby.

He fights to keep the emotion off his face, he doesn't want her to know how he's hurting inside, or to make things worse by fighting her decision. "Right, yeah, uh, that's good. I uh, I guess I'll see you around, then. But uh, I just want you to know that I'm sorry. For all the lies I ever told you, I never wanted to lie to you. I promise it won't happen again, you'll only get the truth from me now on. You don't deserve to be lied to."

He doesn't wait for any kind of response, he's pretty sure he won't get one, and turns on his heel to leave the room.

Letting his feet carry him, he gets lost in his own head. If his reunion with Skye went how it did, he doesn't want to think about how it's going to go when he eventually sees Fitz again. Or even Simmons. He wants to talk to the young man he used to call a friend, but he doesn't want to make the situation even worse by saying the wrong thing to him.

Finding himself at the gym, he steps inside, grateful that there seems to be no one else there, and heads for the first piece of equipment he finds. This is much better than just using the walls, floor, and bed of his cell to workout on.

As he works out, carefully because of his hand, he thinks. Everything is fractured, it's broken, and it's all his fault. He just wants to be able to fix everything, to put the pieces all back together. But he doesn't know how. Doesn't know if he ever will. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So? What did you think? Let me know in a review down below. I'd love to hear your thoughts.
> 
> Until next time,  
> Jellybean96 out!


	11. Chapter 11

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey, babes! Back again with a new chapter for ya! I'm so happy that Grant's finally out of Vault D now, you guys. Now we can start getting into the good stuff. :)
> 
> Enjoy!

Once he leaves the room, Skye turns back toward her computer and lets out a shaky breath, letting a few stray tears roll down her face. She couldn't let them fall in front of him, not wanting him to know that he still gets to her. He doesn't get to have that kind of power over her.

Her hand subconsciously lands on her stomach as the tears continue to fall. She knows that she told Coulson it was okay to let Ward out, but she wasn't expecting it to be so soon. She thought she'd have more time to come around to the thought of having him walking so freely around the base. But now he's out and she'll probably be running into him from time to time around the base if he chooses to actually cooperate with the team and not lock himself up in his room.

He seemed different, though. She's not exactly sure how, but he seemed different to the man they locked away what feels like forever ago when it was only a few months. Maybe being in solitary changed him, or it just stripped away the facade he'd been wearing while on the Bus.

Unless neither of those instances was really him and none of them actually know what the real version of him is like because he's worn so many masks and played so many parts over his time with Garrett and with SHIELD.

And if he can switch so easily from one persona to the other, who's to say something similar won't happen while he's taking care of their child. Who's to say he's not still putting on an act and has some bigger endgame in mind than just being around their child.

The thought terrifies her, sending a cold shiver down her spine. She doesn't want anything happening to her baby. She wants to protect her little one at all costs, even if that means eventually having to get away from Ward. She'll do it if it means protecting her child. That's her number one priority.

"Skye. Skye, can you hear me?"

She's pulled from her thoughts by the familiar, friendly voice, her eyes focusing just enough to see Trip kneeling in front of her, his brows furrowed in concern and his hands resting on her knees.

"Trip?"

He gives her a small smile. "Yeah, it's me. You doing okay? You were completely zoned out when I came in to check on you."

"Ward's out," she says simply and watches as Trip stiffens for a moment before relaxing again.

"He is?"

She nods. "Yeah." She swallows thickly. "He was just in here."

"Are you okay?"

She nods again. "Yeah. I'm fine. I-I don't think he'll hurt me. Not physically, anyway. It just...it was a lot to handle seeing him out and up here walking around."

"I'm sure it was."

"There's a small part of me that still cares about him, but another, larger part of me is saying not to trust him or be around him because I'll just get hurt again, and now I have a baby to think about too. I can't put myself in a situation where I might get hurt just because I want my baby to have its father around."

"I can't even begin to understand how difficult of a situation this is for you right now," Trip tells her. "But I can promise you that Fitz and I are both here for you, whatever you need. And I'll even stick to your side as long as you want so you don't have to risk being alone with him if it bothers you that much."

"You would really do that?" she asks him.

He nods. "Absolutely."

"Are you sure? Because you really don't have to—" She cuts herself off when she sees the determined look in his eyes as he watches her. She knows he won't be backing down, that he'll keep his promise to protect her and her baby. She lets out a small breath and gives him a smile. "Thanks, Trip, I appreciate that."

"Hey, you don't need to thank me, girl. Friends help each other out whenever they need it."

"And you're a damn good friend," she assures him.

He smiles. "I like to think I am." He shifts on his feet before moving to sit next to her on the couch instead. She moves over just a bit to give him some more room. "So, what were you up to before all of this happened?" he asks her, gesturing to the open laptop sitting next to her.

She glances over at the device, pulling it back into her lap but closing the lid. "Oh, uh, just looking at some stuff."

"What kind of stuff?" he asks curiously.

She sighs. "Baby stuff."

The edges of his lips quirk. "What kind of baby stuff?"

She shrugs. "Just the usual stuff that any expecting mother might look at. What to expect throughout my pregnancy and labor, what the best-recommended items to get for the baby are, possible names….stuff like that."

Trip grins. "Girl, you've got it bad."

"Got what?"

"Baby fever."

She rolls her eyes. "Of course I do, Trip. I'm pregnant. It would kind of suck to be pregnant and not be excited about all the things I can buy for the baby."

"Yeah, I guess that's true."

"There's just so much I have to do to get ready for when the baby comes and I honestly don't know if I can do it all in time."

"Well what do you have to do?" he asks her.

"Too much, it seems. One of the biggest things is the living situation. I mean, I really love you guys, but do I really want to raise my kid on a secret base?"

"Well, we are technically still fugitives so I'm not sure you'd have much choice in the matter right now."

She sighs. "And that's another thing. Just for the simple fact that Ward and I are fugitives means my kid is going to probably be subjected to ridiculous prejudices as they grow up if we ever go out in public. That is the last thing that I want for my child."

Trip wraps an arm around her shoulders, allowing her to lean into him. He rubs his hand up and down her arm in a comforting manner, and she's so glad that it actually helps. "Hey, you're gonna be alright. You're gonna be a great mom and this kid is very lucky to have you in their corner. I know you'll do whatever is right in the end. Just try not to stress out about it too much, alright?"

"I'll do my best, but I make absolutely no promises. None whatsoever."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So? what did you think? Let me know in a review down below. I'd love to hear your thoughts.
> 
> Until next time,  
> Jellybean96 out!


	12. Chapter 12

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey babes! Happy Valentine's Day! I am forever alone, as per usual, and I don't have anything to do just yet this morning, so I thought I'd post the new chapter for you. It's not necessarily romantic, but I didn't think you guys would mind too much. :)
> 
> Enjoy!

As the days come and go, Skye does what she can to avoid Grant. Well, she doesn't actively avoid being in the same room as him as the days pass, but she also isn't jumping at the chance to see him or be alone with him.

She's still nervous about being around him, not sure if he has an ulterior motive for wanting to be let out, or if he really is just here for her and the baby. She could probably ask him and find out, but where's the guarantee that he'd tell her the truth if he had another reason for wanting to be let out? What's to stop him from lying completely again to gain the upper hand in all of this? Who's to say that he's not pulling some elaborate ruse? She knows that he's started talking to someone, Coulson made sure that she knew about it. But is it even going to help him? Is he too far gone for any kind of professional help? Are she and their baby really going to be safe?

Light fluttering in her stomach pulls her out of her head and she glances down. She runs a hand over her bump. "You alright in there, kiddo?" She sighs and leans her head back against the top of the couch, her eyes fluttering closed.

"Skye?" The soft whisper comes from beside her and she cracks an open to find Ward standing a few feet from the edge of the couch, his brows furrowed in her direction.

She doesn't jump when she sees him, surprisingly. "Ward. Hi."

"Hi. I'm sorry, I didn't mean to disturb you. It's uh, it's why I whispered. I didn't want to wake you up if you were sleeping. But uh, if you're tired, maybe I could help you back to your room so you can sleep? Your feet are starting to get more sore now, right?"

She furrows her brows at the comment about her sore feet. "Uh, yeah, they are." She shakes her head. "But I'm fine. I was just relaxing."

She sees him deflate. "Right. Of course."

She knows that he knows about Trip and Fitz being the first people she'll call for something when she needs help. But it doesn't stop him from trying to be there for her. She can see it every time they're in the same room, how he hesitates in reaching out to steady her when she gets a little woozy. Or how he watches her longingly when she gets up to go do something else. Or just now when he offered to help her back to her room.

He wants to help her, to take care of her, she knows that, she can see it. She's just not ready to let him in completely. Not again. Not after what happened. She's still trying to heal from that.

But maybe, maybe it wouldn't really hurt anything to have him help her a little. Just a little.

Glancing over, she finds Ward aimlessly wandering the room, obviously unsure of what to do or where to go.

"Hey, Ward?"

His eyes immediately find her again and she can see the little glimmer of hope shining there. "Yeah?"

"Could you uh, could you get me a glass of water from the kitchen? I'm kind of too exhausted to get it myself right now." She knows she doesn't have to justify the request to him, that he'll do just about anything to get back in her good graces.

"Yeah, no problem. Do you want any ice in it or anything?"

She shakes her head. "No, thanks. Just the water."

"Right." He nods once and then turns into the kitchenette. He returns a few seconds later with a cold glass of water for her, handing it directly to her.

She takes the water and gives him a tiny smile. "Thanks."

"Do you need anything else while I'm here?" he asks.

"No, I'm fine. But uh, but I'll let you know." She almost doesn't add that at the end, not wanting to get his hopes up too high.

"Okay. I uh, I guess I'll see you around, then."

"Yeah." She gives him a tight smile before letting it fall once he's left the room.

She honestly doesn't know how much more she can take of being around him, and seeing him looking so innocent. Or, at least, trying to look innocent. Because he is in no way innocent, not by a long shot.

.

.

.

"Coulson? Are you busy?"

The man in question looks up from the file in front of him, giving Skye a small smile when he sees her. "Not at the moment, no. What can I do for you?"

"I was wondering if I could talk to you for a minute."

"Of course. Have a seat." He gestures to one of the chairs in front of his desk as he closes the file and sets it off to the side.

Skye moves further into the office, being sure to close the door behind her, and sits down in one of the chairs, rubbing her hands down over her jeans before caressing her small bump.

"How are you feeling?" Coulson asks, gesturing to her stomach.

She cracks a smile. "Better than some women. Just tired a lot. I uh, I actually wanted to talk to you about something. Normally I'd go to Trip or Fitz, but they'll just tell me what they think I want to hear, or not really give me an answer to my question. So I figured I'd come to you."

He breathes in deeply and sits up a little straighter. "I'll do my best to help you. So what's your question?"

"Um, well, I have an ultrasound coming up, and I'm hoping to find out the sex of the baby at this one because I couldn't at the last one. And now that Ward's around, I'm just...I'm trying to decide if I should actually let him be there or not. What do you think I should do?"

She bites her lip between her teeth as she waits for Coulson to answer. He sits behind his desk, his brows furrowed in thought. She waits impatiently for him to tell her what to do in this situation. They've slowly been working to get their relationship back on track since she told him she was pregnant. She's always looked up to and admired him, and she misses talking to him like she used to. He's the dad that she never had, that's the truth, and she wants to be able to get back to that familial relationship again.

"Well," Coulson speaks up again, drawing her out of her thoughts, "I think that you should let him be there."

Her eyes go wide. "You do?"

He nods. "Yes. I do. He's the father, and as much as I don't like what he has done in the past, I do believe that he is trying to be better, to do better. And I think one way to help him with that is by letting him be more involved. I'm not in any way trying to tell you how to handle this situation, of course, since every decision involving your child should be made by you. However, I do think you should take into consideration the fact that he is the father, and he is here. He's going to find out eventually one way or another."

"Yeah, I guess you're right. Uh, thanks, for listening to me."

He gives her a small smile. "No problem. I'm here for you whatever you need."

She nods. "I know. And I appreciate it." She takes a deep breath and shifts in her seat. "Well, uh, I think I'm going to go now. But I'll see you later."

"Of course. Do you...do you need help up?" he asks hesitantly.

She smiles. "No, thanks. Thankfully I'm still able to get up and down from a seat without any help." She grips tightly to the armrests of the chair and pushes herself up to her feet. "See? I'm not helpless yet." She gives him one more small smile before turning and making her way out of the office.

Finding Trip in the lounge, she falls down next to him on the couch, tossing her feet up onto the table in front of her. "Hey."

"Hi. What's up?"

"I just talked to Coulson."

"About?"

She takes a deep breath. "I'm going to ask Ward to come to the ultrasound."

Trip shifts on the couch. "You sure about that?"

She nods. "Yeah, I think so. He's the father. He deserves to find out the sex of the baby with me instead of after."

"Alright, if that's what you want."

"It is. But uh, will you come too? I don't...I don't think I want to be alone with him just yet for an extended period of time like that. It'll be nice to have you there as a sort of buffer."

Trip smiles and wraps his arm over her shoulder. "Girl, you know I'm gonna say yes."

"Good. I'm glad. Now, as much as I would love to keep sitting on this couch because it is extremely comfortable, I should probably find Ward and tell him about the appointment before I lose my nerve."

"You want me to come with you?"

She shakes her head. "No. I should do this alone." She slowly stands from the couch and smoothes out the front of her shirt.

"Okay. Well just let me know if you need anything."

She smiles softly at him. "I will, thanks."

Exiting the room, she makes her way through the hallways of the building, searching for Ward. She doesn't know where he could be, so she checks all of the rooms he's allowed inside. It's not too difficult to deem which rooms he's allowed in. She knows Coulson wouldn't let him anywhere near their weapons or their servers or anything of major importance.

She ends up at his room last, knocking on his door and then rocking back on her heels as she waits for the door to open.

A few seconds later, the door slides open and she curses her hormones for her breath catching and her skin heating up when she sees him shirtless with water droplets coating his skin. Her mind immediately pulls her back to that fateful night that landed them in this situation in the first place, and it takes every ounce of will power she has not to jump him right then and there. She may not like what he's done, or want to be alone with him, but she knows very well what it's like to be with him intimately.

"Skye?"

She shakes her head and swallows thickly. "Sorry."

"It's fine. I just got out of the shower. What's up?"

She forces herself to look at his face, but the way his hair is still sticking up at odd ends makes her want to run her fingers through it.

"I have an ultrasound tomorrow," she tells him, staring at the center of his forehead to try and keep herself under control, "figured you might want to be there. Hopefully, we'll be finding out the sex of the baby since the last one didn't show anything."

She chances a look and watches as his eyes light up at the information, but his face remains stoic. He's holding back, probably for her benefit. It's a little weird seeing him so excited, even if he's not letting himself show it completely. But maybe it's a good thing.

He nods his head once. "Thank you for telling me. What time is it at?"

"Tomorrow morning at ten."

"Okay. I'll be there."

"Good. I uh, I guess I'll see you then."

"Yeah. But uh, can I just...why do you want me there? I mean...you haven't exactly been very welcoming to me since I got let out." He shifts on his feet.

"You have someone in your corner," she tells him, choosing not to say that it was the man who originally wanted him dead. "Well, you sort of do." She takes a deep breath. "After talking to them, I realized that you should be there. You're this baby's father," she tells him, one hand resting on her stomach. "You should find out the sex at the appointment, not hear it second hand from someone else after the fact."

"Right. Well, thanks."

She pulls her lips in tight. "No problem. I'll see you tomorrow?"

He cracks a small smile. "Wouldn't miss it for the world."

She doesn't say anything in response, just turns and walks away. She needs to get away from him quickly before she does something she might regret. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So? What did you think? Let me know in a review down below. I'd love to hear your thoughts.
> 
> Until next time,  
> Jellybean96 out!


	13. Chapter 13

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey babes! Back again with a new chapter of this little story for ya. I'm getting closer to being done writing the sequel, and I can't wait for you guys to read it once this story is done. :) But first, a moment that I'm sure you've all been waiting for. Let's see who was right. :)
> 
> Enjoy!

"You're nervous."

He lifts his head from where he'd been staring at the floor, thinking about nothing and everything, to find Abby fiddling with some of the medical equipment in the area of the lab they're using.

"Is it that obvious?" he asks her.

She glances up at him. "Dear, you've been staring at that floor from the moment you got here. Half an hour early, I might add."

He sighs. "I know. I just don't want to screw things up any more than I have already. I don't want Skye to think that I don't care. Because I do. And I always have."

"I know. And I'm sure she knows it too."

"I hope she does." He looks back down at the floor, hitting the toe of his shoe against the linoleum, letting his thoughts overtake him again. The last thing he wants is for Skye to think that he doesn't care about her or their baby. He's out of Vault D because he cares. He's here at this appointment because he cares. He's enduring everything she's putting him through because he cares.

She may not care too much about him at the moment, not that he can blame her, but he'd be completely lying if he said that he didn't care about her at all. He is always going to care about her. No matter what happens between them, he's always going to care.

"How are things going with your therapy?"

His head shoots up to Abby and he furrows his brows. "How do you know about that?"

"When you're my age, sweetie, people tend to not think before they talk when they're around you. I've heard things about certain agents around here that'll make even a grown man like yourself blush." She laughs to herself.

He nods. "Right. And uh, therapy's fine. We haven't gotten very far."

"Is that because you don't like talking about what you've been through?"

"Are you sure you shouldn't be helping me instead?" he asks her with a small smile.

"Oh, sweetie, I am definitely not qualified for that kind of work. And I'm afraid I'd get much too emotionally invested in my patients and whatever problems they have. No, your doctor is perfectly qualified, I'm sure."

He shrugs. "I guess. It's just...weird talking about my personal thoughts with a complete stranger."

"I'm sure it will get easier the more you talk to her."

"Maybe. I asked her when we would be done for good, but she said that we'll never really be done for good. I just won't have to see her as much in the future as I start to get a handle on everything I've been through."

"Well, that's good."

He shrugs. "I guess." He focuses back on the floor, his brows knitting together at the thought of being an old man and still having to go to therapy for whatever reason might pop up. That is the last thing he wants to do. He doesn't want his kid to know about him going to therapy, doesn't want him or her to think of him as broken. He doesn't want his child to constantly be worried about saying or doing the wrong thing around him. That isn't how things should be.

"Ward. You're here."

He lifts his head to look at her, standing in the doorway with a surprised expression on her face as she watches him.

He gives her a small, one-shouldered shrug. "I told you I would be."

She nods. "Yes, you did. I uh, I just meant that you're here before me."

"I didn't want to risk being late and missing anything," he tells her. A total lie. He showed up early because he was nervous out of his mind. Nervous about so many things.

"Right. Well, I'm glad you kept your word and showed up." She moves further into the room and that's when he sees Trip stepping in after her.

His fists clench involuntarily at his sides and his body tenses up, his jaw hardening. He has nothing against the man, nothing at all. Except for the fact that he's here right now. "What's he doing here?" he asks, his eyes never leaving Trip. He tried not to be too aggressive in his question, he really hopes that came across.

"I asked him to be here," Skye tells him as she pulls herself onto the examination table with some help from Abby. "This is my appointment and I can invite whoever I want. And I want Trip to be here."

He forces his hands to uncurl. "I know. I just wasn't expecting it is all."

"Well deal with it, because he's not leaving. Now, do you want to see your baby or not?"

Her question draws him out of his anger and he breathes in deeply, taking a few steps toward the table so he can see the display screen. This is it, the moment he's been waiting and hoping for since he first found out.

"Alright, are you both ready to see your baby?" Abby asks, glancing between him and Skye with a small smile.

He nods his head, looking down at Skye to see her watching the screen intently. Sure, they're both excited about possibly finding out if they're having a boy or a girl, but he's probably way more excited than Skye is. This is his first time actually seeing the baby on an ultrasound in real time.

He takes a small step closer to the bed, being sure not to get too close and make Skye uncomfortable. He casts a sideways glance at Trip as he does. He likes the man, even respects him a little, but he still doesn't understand why this other man has to encroach on the appointment. Even if they're not together, this is supposed to be something for him and Skye to experience together, alone, with no one else.

A small thumping reverberates in his ears and his breath catches, his eyes darting back to the screen. "Is that…?"

Abby nods. "That would be the baby's heartbeat, yes."

He breathes out. "Wow."

"Pretty cool, right?" Skye speaks up, looking up at him.

He nods, tears building in his eyes. "Yeah. It's...it's amazing. Wow. That's really our baby's heartbeat."

"To add to that amazing sound, I'm happy to report that your little one is still very healthy," Abby tells them and he relaxes his shoulders. His baby is healthy. That's good, really good. "Would you like to know what you're having?"

"Yes," he replies without hesitation. He shrinks back a little when Skye looks at him with slightly furrowed brows, but he recovers quickly and stands up taller.

They wait in silence as Abby moves the wand around Skye's stomach again, working to get a clearer picture on the screen.

He watches the screen carefully, admiring the fuzzy black and white image as it moves. He's still in awe that it's actually his baby on the screen. It's obviously not fully developed yet, but he can clear as day tell that it's a baby, his baby. That's a real human being that's half of him and he still can't quite believe that it's all really happening.

"So, what is it?" Skye asks eagerly. "Is it a boy or a girl?"

"Well," Abby starts, squinting her eyes a little to look closer at the screen, "if my eyes are still as good as they used to be, then I do believe that you're having a little boy."

Grant's beaming and he knows his eyes are watering when everything gets blurry. "A boy?" he manages to get out. "I'm having a son?" He looks down to see Skye looking up at him with a matching smile and teary eyes.

She grabs his hand tightly in hers. "We're having a boy. A beautiful baby boy."

He nods, laughing through his tears. "Yeah, we are." He steps closer to her, instinctively leaning down to kiss her forehead but he stops himself. When she scoots over the tiniest bit on the bed it validates his split-second decision to not kiss her forehead.

Even though they're sharing a happy moment together, he knows that physical contact is something she's still not comfortable with. She's still holding onto his hand, but he's pretty sure that's as far as it's going to go.

Gently releasing her hand, he takes a small step back, breathing in deeply and wiping at his eyes to get rid of the tears. "So, uh, so he's really okay? He's fine? No weird...abnormalities or anything? Not that I wouldn't love him if he did, I just...I just want to know that he's okay, that he's healthy."

"He is perfectly healthy," Abby reassures him with a small nod. "Everything is progressing just as it should. Can I assume that you want printouts again?" she asks, directed at Skye.

She nods. "Yes, please."

"Alright, it'll be just a moment." Abby turns toward the machine behind her and presses a few buttons. It's only a few seconds before it spits out a few copies of the ultrasound. "There you are," she says, handing the photos over to Skye.

She smiles down at the image before looking up at him and holding out one of the copies. "Here. This one's yours."

"Really?" he asks, slowly reaching out to take the photo from her.

She nods. "Yeah. That's your son, Grant, you should have a photo too."

He nods, staring down at the photo. "Right, yeah." He continues staring at the photo as Skye discusses a few things with Abby, possible names for their baby already running through his head. Now that he knows it's going to be a boy, it narrows down all the names he'd already been thinking of.

Since the moment he found out he was going to be a dad he started thinking of names. Unfortunately, not many names came to his mind, and he wants his son to have the most perfect name that he can possibly have. He hasn't said anything to Skye about it, though, not wanting to overstep whatever boundaries there are between them. He knows that it's their child together, but he doesn't want to risk not be able to see his baby because of something so small.

"Ward? Ward."

"Sorry. What?"

"The appointment's over," Skye tells him. She's standing in front of him now, Trip just behind her and Abby nowhere to be found.

"Oh, right, sorry." He lets out a huffed laugh. "Guess I just got lost in my head a little. I still can't believe this is actually happening," he says, holding up the ultrasound photo.

"Well, believe it," she says back. "In a few months, you're going to be a dad. And there's still a lot left to do."

"Yes there is," he says, his mind wandering to all the details they need to discuss, on what to do with different aspects of the baby arriving. But he figures that can all wait until later. They just found out they're having a son, she probably needs some time to let it all sink in before he approaches her with other decisions that need to be made.

"I'm uh, I have a few things I need to go do," Skye says, pulling him out of his head.

"Oh, uh, yeah, I uh, I have some things to do as well. I'll see you around?" he asks, a small hint of hope in his voice.

She nods. "Yeah."

"Great."

He gives her a small smile and then makes his way out of the med bay, holding tightly to the ultrasound photo in his hand. He stares down at it, the wonder and amazement still encompassing him, as he passes through the halls toward his room. He manages to avoid running into any agents, skillfully dodging their bodies as he walks.

Entering his room, he closes the door tightly behind him and moves over to his bed, sitting down on the edge of it and continuing to stare at the photo in his hands.

"I'm going to do everything I can to protect you," he says to the image. "You're my son, and I won't let you down."

Turning around, he tears a piece of tape off the dispenser he managed to get a hold of and tacks the photo onto his wall, right next to the one Skye gave him when she told him she was pregnant.

Sitting back, he admires the two photos on the otherwise blank wall. Those two images are the only things giving any life or personality to his room.

And soon enough, his son will actually be here in the world, and not just in a photo on his wall. He can't wait. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So? What did you think? Let me know in a review down below. I'd love to hear your thoughts.
> 
> Until next time,  
> Jellybean96 out!


	14. Chapter 14

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey babes! Back again with a new chapter for ya! Hope you're all excited to meet their kid soon-ish. It's gonna be a bit of a roller coaster to get there, though.
> 
> Enjoy!

* * *

"It's a boy?"

Grant smiles and nods. "Yeah. I'm going to have a son. I'm going to be a dad, Fitz." His smile falls as his mind starts racing. "I just...what if I'm not good at it? What if I screw up my kid because I don't know how to actually be a dad?"

"You'll be fine," Fitz assures him, fiddling with a few pieces of machinery in front of him. "No one—no one knows how to be a parent the first time."

Grant sighs. "Yeah, I guess so. Hey, do you mind if I use your laptop for a little while? Coulson hasn't given me one of my own, and I want to start looking up baby names."

"Uh, yeah, sure. Just uh, just...hang on." Fitz steps over to the open laptop, mumbling to himself for a moment as his fingers hover over the keys. He taps on a few of the buttons before stepping back to his machines. "There."

"Thanks." Grant slides off his seat and moves to the stool in front of the laptop, quickly opening up the Internet browser. "I want to find the perfect name," he tells Fitz as he begins to google search names for baby boys. "Something that will fit our son perfectly, that Skye will also like. But I also want it to have meaning." He sighs. "That might put too many restrictions on my choices, then."

"Don't stress."

"What?"

"Don't stress," Fitz repeats as he starts working again. "It'll come to you. Don't stress. Take your time. Relax."

"Yeah, I guess you're right."

He spends the next half hour scrolling through different baby name sites, looking at the different lists of possible names for his son. He finds one that lets you input the last name, and then it'll give you name suggestions that sound good with the last name. He almost does that. But he doesn't want to assume that his son will have his last name. He doesn't know if Skye even wants that, and he doesn't want to just assume wrong and have her be upset with him.

As he's browsing through the L names of one website, he comes across the name 'Leo'. He glances over at the engineer at the table next to him, a small smile coming to his face. Leo is a good name, and it has meaning to him. He knows Skye would like it. But maybe not as a first name. Maybe that could be his son's middle name if he finds a first name that would go great with it.

Giving his son the middle name of 'Leo' would be a great way to honor one of the few people on the base who's actually shown him any sort of decency since he arrived, despite what he did to him. He wasn't expecting for the man to be around him so willingly, but he's certainly not complaining. His doctor, Lisa, told him to reach out and extend an olive branch, to put it out there that he wants to reconnect, but not to push it. Thankfully, he didn't have to wait for too long for Fitz to return the gesture of wanting to reconnect. They've slowly been trying to rekindle the friendship that they had back on the Bus when he thought of the engineer as a little brother. And he has a pretty strong feeling that the engineer would like it if he named his son after him, but he doesn't want to say anything just yet, in case Skye doesn't like the choice he came up with.

While he's browsing, he comes across different photos of people's children in all sorts of settings and situations. Most of them are very candid shots of the kids playing outside, or playing with their pets, or other family members. He knows for a fact there aren't any photos of him like that in existence.

If his family even still has any pictures of him, those pictures would be very staged photos from his parents' various political functions, or forced portraits from the holidays. His childhood never really felt like a childhood. And that's the last thing he wants for his son. He wants more than anything to break the cycle.

"Hey, Fitz," he says, spinning in his seat to face the Scotsman.

"Um, yes?"

"Do you have a camera, by chance? One that I could keep, maybe?"

"Oh, um, no, I don't. Sorry."

He sighs, his shoulders falling. "That's fine."

"Check storage, though."

His brows furrow. "What?"

"Check old SHIELD storage rooms. Maybe there's something there."

He smiles. "Fitz, you're a genius."

"I know."

He laughs quietly and jumps up from his seat, moving as quickly as he can through the halls without raising any suspicion.

Finding one of the old storage rooms from back when their current base was first used, he's thankful that Coulson never thought to ban him from the storage closets. Probably never thought he'd have any use for them, so it didn't cross his mind to make them off-limits.

Stepping inside, he begins rooting around in the different bags and boxes lying around and stuck on the metal shelves. A lot of paperwork, and old files and documents, old school weapons and tech that are way out-of-date. But no cameras so far. Nothing even so much as resembling a camera. Then again, he's never been very technologically savvy, so even if he came across a camera type of machine, he probably wouldn't know it.

Pulling another worn box off the shelf, he sets it on the table next to him and removes the lid, peering inside at the contents.

"That's more like it," he says to himself when he sees the old Polaroid camera sitting inside of it. He carefully lifts the camera out of the box, turning it over in his hands to inspect it for any possible damage. "This has to be from the '80s, at least. And it's still in really good condition. Wow."

Setting the camera aside, he digs inside the box again, finding a packet of unused film slides, ready to be loaded into the camera. They'll be perfect to use to take pictures of his son as he grows up. And maybe a few of Skye in the later stages of her pregnancy. Dropping them next to the camera, he pulls out a stack of already developed Polaroids, most likely from its previous owner.

Turning around and leaning against the table, he holds the stack in his hands and begins shuffling through them, a small smile coming to his face at the different images. The photos range from shots of SHIELD agents in their respective fields to shots of them lounging around and relaxing. It reminds him of his days on the Bus, back before everything went to hell, and he and the team would relax together and act like a family. But that's gone now. Thanks in large part to him.

His breath catches on one of the photos toward the end of the stack, a photo of two young boys standing in the yard of an old house, their arms hanging around each other with wide, mischievous smiles on their faces. They're either brothers or best friends.

Looking at the photo, his mind flashes back to a familiar point in his life, a short period of time when he had a friend like this, someone he was close with. He doesn't think much about him anymore. Hasn't thought about him in years since the boy's family moved away when they were still kids. But he helped. He helped by just being there to talk to or hang out with whenever his parents or Christian were being too much to handle. He doesn't remember much of his old friend, except for his name.

"Adian," he says quietly to himself. His brows furrow and he drops the photo, staring at the wall ahead of him. "Adian...Adian Leo…"

He beams. "That's it. That's the name. It's perfect."

Gathering up everything that he had pulled off the shelves, he puts it all back where it belongs, making sure nothing is out of place. He's not sure if anyone ever comes in here, but the last thing he wants is for said person to not be able to find anything because of him.

Once he's finished clearing away his mess, he takes the Polaroid camera and the unused film sheets with him back to his room.

Settling himself on his bed, he pulls the camera into his lap and fiddles with it a bit, trying to remember how it works. He knows his Gramsy used to have one of these cameras, and he used to play with it sometimes when he was younger.

He smiles when he finds the switch to open the camera, allowing him to slide an unused cartridge inside and then close the door again.

Once the camera's all set up, he glances through the viewfinder and looks back and forth across his room. Nothing in there is worth taking a picture of, though.

A soft knock at his door pulls his attention away from the camera. He sets the device to the side and stands from his bed, crossing to the door.

"Coulson," he says when he pulls the door open. "What's going on? Is it Skye? Is she okay?"

The older man holds a hand up to silence him. "Skye's fine. I came here for another reason. You said you're willing to do whatever you can to prove to me that you've changed, right?"

He nods. "Yes."

"Well, I have a way you can do that."

His entire body perks up and he stands a little straighter. "You do? What is it?" He's more than eager to know what he can do, he wants to get back in the team's good graces. Especially Skye's.

"Recently we discovered a nearby Hydra base that's still active. We're hoping to get someone on the inside, to build trust quickly so they can take it down. Be honest with me, do you still have connections inside Hydra?"

He rubs at the back of his neck. "Well, they were never really my connections. They came more through Garrett than anything else." He watches the older man's jaw tick at the name drop. "But I could still probably work with that."

"Good. You'll be going in, then."

He stills, his heart sinking down into his throat. Hydra. He thought he left that all behind. He never thought he'd be going back. But he needs to do this. He needs to prove that he's changed. Or, at least, that he's changing. He wants to be better, if not for anything else, then for his son. To make the world better for his son.

"We'll be watching you carefully," Coulson tells him, pulling him from his head. "We're going to do what we can to ensure that nothing goes wrong, but you know as well as I do that there's only so much we can do before it risks your cover being blown."

"Right, of course. And what exactly is my cover going to be?"

"Hydra agent on the run from SHIELD after you escaped imprisonment. You can explain it how you like to whoever asks, but I'm sure I don't need to tell you to not get too extravagant."

He nods. "Of course."

"Good." He takes a deep breath. "Your main objective will be to find their servers and get whatever information you can off of them. I had some of the techs whip up a device that once you plug it into the server, it will do all the work for you. Then you get out of there and blow the place."

"I'll get it done." He shifts on his feet. "How long are you anticipating for this op?" he asks nervously, worried that he'll be kept away longer than he'd like.

"Hopefully not too long," Coulson says. "You'll need some time to gain their trust, or gain it back, I suppose, in order to be able to be left alone long enough to find the servers and get their files. I know...I know that Skye's getting pretty late into her pregnancy now, so the last thing I want to do is keep you away from that for too long, but this is mission is important."

Grant nods. "I know, don't worry. I'll get it done."

"That's what I like to hear. Now get yourself ready and meet me in the hangar as soon as possible. You're leaving immediately seeing as we'll only have a small window of opportunity to get you into the group."

"Of course. But uh, could I...could I talk to Skye first before we leave? I have something important to talk to her about."

Coulson's quiet for a moment before sighing. "Yes, that's fine. But be quick about it, we don't have a lot of time. And don't tell her anything about the mission, no one can know. This one's off the books."

He nods. "Not a problem. I'll meet you in the hanger."

He closes the door after Coulson leaves and quickly changes into one of his dark henley's and a pair of blue jeans, stopping in the bathroom to make sure his hair is messed up just a little.

Grabbing the Polaroid off his bed, he makes his way out of his room and strides down the halls in search of the mother of his unborn child.

Finding her in the lounge, like she usually is, he stops abruptly and really takes in the scene. Like every other time he's found her there, she's relaxing on the couch with her feet up in front of her. Her laptop is open and resting on her stomach, her phone resting on the arm of the couch, playing her favorite music.

Taking another moment to himself, he raises the camera up and looks through the viewfinder, focusing on Skye as best he can and snapping the photo. When the image ejects, he quickly and carefully slides it into his back pocket before taking a deep breath and stepping into the room.

"Skye," he speaks up softly, not wanting to startle her too badly.

She gives him a tiny hint of a smile over her shoulder. "Ward. Hi." She pauses her music and pulls herself up a bit, closing her laptop and setting it aside.

"Hi." He moves closer to the couch, setting the camera down on one of the nearby shelves. "How are you feeling?"

She lets out a breath, one hand running over her stomach. "Fine. Just tired."

"Sorry to hear that."

She shrugs, not saying anything in response. He notices her brows furrow together when he shifts on his feet. "Hey, you okay?"

He nods. "Yeah, I'm fine. I uh, I just wanted to find you so I could talk to you about something."

"Help me up first," she tells him. "I've been sitting like this for too long." She holds her hands out and he quickly helps her to her feet, releasing her hands as soon as she's standing. She breathes out, resting one hand on her lower back and the other underneath her belly. "So, what's up? What did you want to talk about?"

"Well, I found this old Polaroid camera earlier in storage, and there was this old stack of photos with it. One of the photos was of these two young boys, I think they were probably best friends or something, and it reminded me of this kid that I knew when I was younger. Probably the only real friend I ever had growing up before he moved away and my life went straight to hell."

"Is there a point to all of this?" Skye asks him carefully.

He shakes his head. "Right, sorry. I uh, I thought of a name for the baby, one that I really like and I hope you'll like it too. I don't want to overstep or anything, though."

"No, it's your baby too, you should have some say in the name."

He smiles. "That's great. Personally, I think it's the perfect name for him."

"What did you come up with?"

"A—"

"Ward."

Looking over his shoulder, he finds Coulson in the doorway to the lounge. "Yeah?"

"It's time to go."

"Could I just have another minute?"

"Sorry, no, we need to leave."

He sighs, his shoulders slumping. "Fine. I'm coming."

"Wait," Skye speaks up, pulling both men's attention to hear. "You were going to tell me the name you came up with for the baby."

"I know. And I'll tell you as soon as I get back."

"Where are you going?" she asks, glancing past him at Coulson.

"Ward's helping me with something, that's all I can tell you right now. Ward, let's move."

He nods. "Right." He faces Skye again, opening and closing his mouth a few times, unsure of exactly what to say to her.

"You...you were going to tell me the name you came up with," she says to him before he can say anything.

"And I will," he assures her. "I promise. But it looks like it'll have to wait until I get back. It won't be too long. Do you think you can wait?"

She nods. "Uh, yeah, I can."

"Good. I'll be back soon." He hesitates before stepping forward to drop a quick kiss to the top of Skye's head, his hand brushing against her arm.

Without another word or look, knowing he won't be able to handle looking at her face while he leaves, he turns and follows Coulson through the hallway and toward the hangar. The sooner he leaves, the sooner he can get back to Skye and his son. And that's all he wants. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So? What did you think? Let me know in a review down below. I'd love to hear your thoughts.
> 
> Until next time,  
> Jellybean96 out!


	15. Chapter 15

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi, babes! Back again with a new chapter for ya! Glad to know you're all worried about Grant too. This one we get a little insight into how Skye's feeling about all of this. And a certain milestone that's a little bittersweet.
> 
> Enjoy!

* * *

Staring after Ward's retreating form, Skye can't help the massive sinking feeling she gets in her gut. She doesn't like this. At all. They're keeping something from her. And she knows that Ward wouldn't keep anything from her if he had a choice, not now. So something is obviously going on. Someone has to know something.

"Trip!" she shouts, knowing he's not very far away despite not actually being in the room. "Trip!"

A few seconds later, Trip barrels into the room, breathing heavy. "Skye? Are you okay? Is something wrong?"

"I'm fine," she assures him quickly, despite the fact that she's presently worried out of her mind for the father of her baby. "Do you know about any missions going on that Ward's a part of?"

Trip shakes his head. "Sorry, I don't. He's really on a mission?"

She sighs heavily. "I don't know. That's why I was asking. Coulson said he's having Ward do something for him, but he wouldn't tell me what it is. And I'm kind of worried."

"It's probably nothing."

She bites her lip between her teeth. "Yeah, maybe. Do you know where Fitz is?"

"In the lab like usual."

"Great, thanks."

She hurries from the room as best she can in her current condition and moves through the hallways in the direction of the lab. If anyone would know where Ward is going, then Fitz might, considering how much time the two have been spending together. She really is glad that those two seem to be getting their friendship back on track, she always thought they were adorable. She was a little surprised that Fitz gave in so quickly to letting Ward be around him alone, though. She had expected more resistance from the engineer.

"Fitz!" she calls out as she enters the lab, approaching where her friend stands at one of the many tables working on a project. "Fitz."

The man in question turns from his project and gives her a small smile. "Skye. How are you? You feeling okay?"

"I'm fine, Fitz. Do you know where Ward went? He left with Coulson a few minutes ago but neither of them said where they were going and I'm kind of starting to freak out because he told me he'd be here for me and the baby and I don't—"

"Um, you're rambling."

"What? Oh, uh, sorry." She takes a few deep breaths to try and calm her heart rate. "Do you know where Ward went?"

He shakes his head. "No. I don't."

"Damn it. I was really counting on you knowing where he is. You two are always hanging out together so I thought you'd know."

He blinks a few times, glancing at the project in front of him. "I didn't even know he'd gone."

She sighs, her head hanging slightly. "That's fine. I guess...I guess I'll just have to wait for him to come back and ask him where he was. Hopefully, he won't be gone for too long."

"Yeah, hopefully. And hopefully...whatever...whatever he's doing...it isn't dangerous."

"I hope so too, Fitz." She stands up a little straighter when the gears start turning in her head. "Wait. Coulson said something when he was talking about letting Ward out of Vault D, that he'd have to prove himself, or something like that. And Ward...he said a couple of times that he'd do whatever he needed to do to be here for me and the baby and...oh gosh."

"What? What is it?"

She shakes her head. "I don't know for sure. But I have a bad feeling I'm not going to like whatever it is. I'll see you later, Fitz, okay?"

He nods. "Okay."

She squeezes his arm before leaving the lab and going back to the lounge where she knows her laptop is still on the couch.

Once she gets there, she immediately sits down and pulls her laptop close to her, opening the lid and quickly getting through SHIELD's mainframe. It's not as difficult as it once was, considering she's actually a part of SHIELD now, but there are still some sections she doesn't have access to. Unless she hacks her way in.

Quickly breaking through the barriers that would keep anyone else out, she finds the section containing all the active missions and begins searching through them, looking for anything that'll match what she knows about the mission. Which is pretty much nothing, she realizes, causing her to frown.

All she knows is that Ward is going on a mission. She doesn't know where it is, what he's doing, how long he'll be gone, or even if anyone else is with him.

To make matters worse, she doesn't find a single active mission that could possibly be what Ward is doing. Despite not knowing anything about the mission, she knows his skill set, what he's capable of. All the currently active missions won't utilize his skills at all, or they don't seem like they'd be challenging enough for someone of his caliber.

Slamming the lid shut, she curses under her breath, tears stinging at her eyes. She just wants to know where he is. Is that really too much to ask? She doesn't think it is.

All she wants is to know that when her son is born he's still going to have a father. She's never wanted to be a single mother, that's never been the dream.

Then again, being a pregnant fugitive from the law whose baby-daddy is also a fugitive with ties to a terrorist organization is not how she'd imagined her life going either. But here she is.

.

.

.

Over the next few days, she tries her hardest not to let herself be driven mad out of worry and not knowing where her baby's father is. But she can't help it. She can't help but spend her time worrying about him.

She's also been actively avoiding Coulson since the man returned from wherever he took Ward, knowing that he probably won't tell her anything. She knows she won't be able to look at him without being reminded that she has no idea where Ward is or what he's up to.

When she's not eating or using the bathroom, which is a lot, she's either on the couch in the lounge or in her bed, distracting herself with her laptop in whatever way she can.

It's only been a day and a half since Ward left to wherever Coulson sent him, and all she's done is create random codes on her laptop that were meant for SHIELD but she doesn't even know if they'll actually work. She's just going through the motions, not really paying attention to what she's creating. The only thing on her mind is Ward, and if he's okay.

Letting out a sigh, she drops a hand to her stomach, rubbing over the bump soothingly. "I miss your dad, kiddo. I can't even deny it at this point. I don't even care who knows. I don't care if he knows. I miss him. Or at least, I miss the thought of having him here to help me with you when you get here. I really don't want to have to raise you alone. I need your dad back."

A small thump against her palm makes her jump in her seat and then freeze, her breath hitching sharply. Another thump pulls her back to the moment. "Did you just…?"

Fresh tears form in her eyes and she tries to fight them back but can't. They fall down her cheeks, staining her shirt little by little.

"Skye? You okay in here?"

She looks up from her stomach to see Trip slowly approaching her, his brows furrowed in concern. "The baby…" she gets out through her tears.

"Is the baby okay?"

She shakes her head. "He kicked."

"That's a good thing, right?"

A sob breaks through, the tears continuing to fall heavily. "Grant's not here. And the baby kicked. He told...he told me he picked out a name. But he...he left before he told me. And I...I don't know where he is. He should be...be here. And he's not. He should be here, Trip."

Her cries grow when she feels Trip's arms circle around her, wishing in the back of her head that it was Grant's arms around her instead.

"What...what if something happens? And he can't...can't be here? What am I going to do, Trip? He was so...so excited to be a dad."

"Whoa whoa whoa, hey, relax for a minute, girl. Take deep breaths. In and out, alright?"

She nods her head, doing her best to slow her breathing and get her crying under control so she's not a sobbing mess anymore. She wipes at her face, getting rid of the remaining tears.

"Feeling better?" Trip asks her.

"A little."

"Okay, good."

"I'm sorry," she mutters, looking down and fiddling with the hem of her t-shirt.

"What for?"

"For being such a mess right now. You shouldn't have to deal with this. You didn't ask for any of this."

"Hey, I'm your friend, and I'm here for whatever you need. That's how friendship works, girl. Get used to it."

She gives him a small smile. "I just...I wish Grant was here right now. He'd be so excited to feel the baby move, I know he would. But he's off on some probably dangerous mission because he feels like he needs to prove himself to everyone."

"Are you saying he doesn't?"

"He shouldn't have to go on dangerous missions to prove himself," she says. "There should be other ways."

"We don't know if the mission is dangerous. It could just be a recon mission."

"Please, Trip, this is Coulson we're talking about. He may have let Grant out of Vault D for me and the baby, and made him talk to a professional, but he still doesn't trust him completely. I'm not saying that I trust Grant completely either, but I'm not going to make him go on a potentially life-threatening mission when he has a kid on the way. That's just beyond cruel. And Coulson won't tell me if he's okay or not, so I'm really, really freaking out about the whole thing. As you witnessed when you came in."

"I'm sure he's fine with whatever mission he's doing. Ward knows how to handle himself."

She sighs. "I know he does, Trip. I guess it's more of an irrational fear than anything else."

"No, hey, there's nothing irrational about wanting the father of your baby to come back safely. Just try not to keep everything all bottled up inside, okay?"

She smiles and nods. "I promise I'll do my best."

"Good. Now, I have a few things I need to go and take care of, but I hate to leave you alone if you're still feeling upset."

"I'll be fine. You go and do what you need to do."

"You sure?"

"Yes, I'm sure. Now go. I'll call you if I need anything."

"Alright." He presses a friendly kiss to the side of her head before standing from the couch and making his way back out of the lounge.

Leaning back into the couch, she runs both hands down over her stomach, letting out a breath as her body relaxes.

"It's just you and me right now, kiddo," she says. "We've both got to stay strong, okay? Hopefully, your dad will come back soon." A small thump pounds on her palm and she bites her lower lip between her teeth, trying to stop the onslaught of tears threatening to spill over.

"I know, baby, I miss him too."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So? What did you think? Let me know in a review down below. I'd love to hear your thoughts.
> 
> Until next time,  
> Jellybean96 out!


	16. Chapter 16

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey babes! Thanks for being patient! Back with a new chapter for ya! You get a little more insight into what Skye's going through with this one.
> 
> Enjoy!

It's been just over a week since Grant left and Skye is trying as hard as she can to not lose her mind. She knows that Trip is doing whatever he can to keep her busy without actually telling her that's what he's doing. He'll give her small tasks to do now and then, telling her it's for a mission he's currently preparing for. She knows that it's never the truth, but she appreciates his efforts to help her so she doesn't call him out on it.

Fitz also tries to keep her busy in his own way, asking her for help on various projects he's working on. Though, part of her thinks it's because he still doesn't have complete function of his hand and needs an extra set. Not that she minds helping him out. She enjoys spending time with the engineer.

She's busy working on one of Trip's latest 'projects' when Coulson finds her in the lounge. She wasn't expecting to see him, hasn't really had a conversation with him the past week that lasted longer than a quick greeting or update about something.

"Skye."

She looks up at him and fights the urge to beg him for any information on Grant. She knows he won't tell her anything. "Coulson. What can I help you with?"

"I actually came to tell you that Ward's coming back to the base."

She sits up straighter at the news, she knows her face is lighting up at the thought of being able to see him again and have him feel their baby kick. "He is? Really?"

Coulson nods once. "Yes."

Her brows furrow at his sharp response and the way he's avoiding eye contact with her. "Wait, what's going on? What aren't you telling me?"

"Skye, there's nothing to wor—"

"Coulson, don't you dare tell me there's nothing to worry about." She closes her laptop and sets it off to the side, pulling herself up to her feet and standing directly in front of him, one hand resting underneath her baby bump. "What the hell is going on?" she asks through gritted teeth.

Coulson takes a deep, shaky breath. "There was...an incident."

Her breath catches involuntarily. "What kind of incident? What were you having him do?"

"I sent him undercover into Hydra…"

Her eyes go wide. "You what? What the hell, Coulson? He was trying to get out of that life, trying to be better, for our son. And you sent him back inside? What were you thinking?"

"We needed someone to get on the inside, someone they wouldn't question so easily. He was willing to get inside for us."

"Probably because he didn't want to be locked back up in Vault D if he didn't," she bites. "What happened?"

"I'm not sure," he admits. "All I know is that something obviously went wrong inside because he arrived at the rendezvous point earlier than planned. The team that was waiting there is bringing him in, but they haven't said why he showed up early. Apparently, he was injured pretty badly when they saw him and then he passed out."

Her heart drops instantly, her stomach churning and not because of the baby. This cannot be happening, he has to be okay. He has to. He has to be okay so that he can feel their son kick and see him being born and actually help her raise him.

"Where is he?" she demands immediately. "When is he getting to the base? I need to see him."

"You can't."

"What do you mean I can't?"

"As soon as he arrives, he's being taken straight to the med bay to fix whatever injuries he may have sustained. Once the doctor says that he's up to it, you can see him. But for now, you need to wait."

"You want me to wait? Are you serious?"

"Yes, I'm serious, Skye. He's going to be in surgery, you won't be able to see him yet. Promise me you'll wait in here until someone comes to get you."

She stays quiet, running her hand over her stomach, trying to calm the rapid thumping inside her belly. She hates this.

"Skye, I need you to promise me that you'll wait here."

She shakes her head, her eyes watering and her heart beating fast. "I don't...I don't know if I can…"

"It's best for the both of you if you just hang on until he's done. I can go find Trip or Fitz to wait with you if that'll be better."

She slowly nods her head, not completely registering the older man's hands on her shoulders or when he leaves the room in a hurry. Everything is wrong. None of this should have happened.

She doesn't fully register the multiple hands on her until everything around her starts to come back into focus, the couch cushion beneath her again.

Blinking a few times to clear away any remaining tears, she finds both Trip and Fitz kneeling in front of her, their eyebrows furrowed in deep concern.

"Skye? Skye, can you hear me? Skye."

"Wh-what?"

"Hey," Trip says, "are you with me, girl?"

"Grant…"

"He's not here," Trip tells her with a small shake of his head. "Coulson came to get us, said you might want some company while you wait. Think you're up for a couple of friendly faces?"

She licks her lips. "Um, I think so."

"Good, because we weren't going anywhere. Right, Fitz?"

"Uh, um, y-yeah. Not going anywhere."

Both men settle themselves on either side of Skye, Trip taking the prerogative to wrap his arm around Skye's shoulders in a comforting manner.

"We've got you, alright? We've got you."

"He needs to be okay," she mutters, her eyes fixating on the carpet in front of her. "He needs to be here for the baby. He told me he'd be here for us, and now he might not be."

"Whoa, hey, you can't think like that," Trip says. "You gotta think positive, alright? Think you can try and do that?"

She nods without really thinking about it, knowing that he won't let up unless she grants him some kind of acknowledgment that she heard him.

All she can think about is Grant, and if he's going to be okay and be able to protect and provide for their baby as he grows up.

Her mind wanders at the thought of her baby growing older and all she can picture in her mind is a miniature version of Grant, a head full of dark hair and a natural protective instinct ingrained in him from the moment he's born. She knows they're going to have their hands full with a baby, especially when they aren't able to go outside and into any towns, considering the fact that they're both still technically fugitives of the law.

That's not the kind of life she wants for her baby, but she just has to hope that things will get better eventually, that their kid will have the kind of childhood neither of his parents had.

She wants everything for her baby that she never had, including both of his parents present the entire time and a happy childhood that he'll always want to remember.

"Agent Skye?"

Her head shooting up at hearing her name, she finds one of the residents of the med bay standing in front of her, a white mask hanging around his neck and a light blue cloth cap bunched in his hands.

"What's going on?" she asks. "Is Grant back yet?"

The man nods. "He arrived a few hours ago."

Her eyes go wide. "And no one thought to tell me?"

"We tried to, Skye," Trip speaks, pulling her attention to him. "But you weren't answering us. You seemed kind of out of it, and we didn't need you worrying more than you already were, so they went ahead and took him back to the med bay."

She looks back to the doctor. "How is he? Can I see him?"

"He's fine now, he's resting after the surgery."

She lets out a heavy breath, allowing her body to relax at the news. "He's really okay?"

The man nods again. "Yes. There was some internal bleeding that we managed to stop fairly quickly. He does have a broken leg which will need to remain in a cast for a few weeks, but other than that and a few cuts and bruises, he's relatively okay."

"Oh, thank goodness."

"Also," the doctor continues, regaining her attention, "we found something on him when we were removing his clothing to operate." He reaches into the pocket of his scrubs and pulls out a small piece of what looks like photo paper, but nothing she's used to seeing. "It took us a moment to realize who the person in the photo was, but when we figured it out, we thought you'd like to have it."

She takes the photo he's holding out to her and she finally registers that it's a Polaroid photo. Glancing down at the image, it takes her a moment to recognize the person in the center of it. It's a blurred image, with a few faded red stains on the edges that she doesn't want to think about, but there's no mistaking who the person is in the photo. It's her, relaxing on the couch with her laptop and phone like always.

Her eyes water as she continues looking at the photo, realizing the photo was taken right before Grant told her he came up with a name for their baby, right before Coulson pulled him away with no explanation.

She smiles a little at the way it's off-center and at a slight angle. She had no idea he was even taking the picture of her, too distracted by her music and the work on her laptop until he approached her.

She doesn't know if she ever would have seen the photo had he not been injured, and now that she knows he's going to be okay, she can give the photo back to him and tell him how sweet she thinks it is. They're not even together and he's making her heart swell.

"Thank you," she manages to get out in a quiet voice, glancing up at the doctor. She swallows thickly. "Thank you for bringing this to me."

"No problem. And you can go back and see him any time you like. He won't be awake, though; we had to induce a coma to allow his body some extra time to start healing."

She nods. "Okay. Thank you."

The doctor gives her a tight smile before exiting the room, leaving her alone with Trip and Fitz.

"Do you want one of us to come with you?" Trip asks her.

She shakes her head. "No, thanks. I uh, I need to go by myself and see that he's actually okay. But uh, once I see that he's okay, I'll come and get you guys."

Trip nods. "Yeah, no problem. Take your time, though, alright? Don't rush it for us."

She nods. "Okay. Yeah. I uh, I guess I'll see you guys later, then." She pulls herself up off the couch, with some assistance from Fitz and Trip, and then begins making her way out of the lounge and down toward the med bay. She grips tightly to the Polaroid photo as she walks, needing something physical to hold onto while she prepares herself.

Turns out, she didn't prepare herself enough. She nearly falls to her knees, tears in her eyes, when she sees him. Throughout the short time that she's known him, she's never seen him look so weak or vulnerable. He always made sure to put on a strong front, for her and everyone else.

Hooked up to different machines with various wires, and his leg set in a cast and propped up at the end of the bed, she realizes this is how he must have felt after she got shot by Quinn. Helpless and unable to make the pain go away.

She hates that he's in this position, that Coulson made him feel like the only way to get back in their good graces is to be so near to death. At least, that's what she's assuming from how he looks and the fact that he's comatose.

Moving closer to his bed, she grabs one of his hands in hers, holding onto it tightly as she sits in the chair right behind her.

"Hey," she manages to get out through her tears. "I'm here, okay?" She glances down at her stomach and then back at Grant. "We're both here. You can wake up whenever you want. We're not going anywhere."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So? What did you think? Let me know in a review down below. I'd love to hear your thoughts.
> 
> Also, I'm working on a new Skyeward fic, and I need twitter/Tumblr handles for it. If you wouldn't mind yours being featured in the story, just let me know. I need as many as I can get.
> 
> Until next time,  
> Jellybean96 out!


	17. Chapter 17

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey babes! Back again with a new chapter for ya! Figured I have some time before I have to go work, might as well update this story. We're getting closer to the end now too. Only a few more chapters to go. But fear not, because there will be a sequel. :)
> 
> Enjoy!

True to her word, Skye doesn't leave his side for the few days it takes for him to wake up. Everyone, Fitz and Trip especially, tries to get her to at least go to the kitchen and get some food every now and then, since she has her baby to think about too, but she always refuses. When Grant wakes up, she wants to be the first one that he sees. And she knows he'll want that too.

It happens when she starts dozing off, the exhaustion from waiting for him to wake up finally getting to her. She's eaten whatever was brought to her while she waited, not wanting to leave his side, but she's hardly slept.

A loud coughing fit is what draws her attention, sitting up quickly and focusing on Grant's body, watching as he shakes, his face contorting in pain.

She nearly chokes on a sob when she sees his eyes opening and she wants to call for someone, but she also just wants to take a moment to be with him before things start getting crazy.

"Grant?" she speaks up, holding tightly to his hand and brushing some of the hair away from his forehead. "Grant, can you hear me? Come on, open your eyes. Please."

It takes another moment, but his eyes slowly open and his head turns toward her, his cheek pressed into the pillow. "A-adian."

Her brows furrow. "What? What are you talking about? Grant?" She dips her head a little to look at his face, noticing he's staring straight ahead of him. She follows his line of sight, finding it leads right to her stomach. Her breath catches. "Adian," she says, remembering what he said. "Is that...is that the name you were going to tell me before you left?"

He nods slowly. "Adian...Leo."

A smile small grows on her lips, her free hand coming to rest on her stomach. "Adian Leo Ward. It's perfect."

His eyes shoot up to hers and he doesn't need to speak for her to understand the question lingering in his eyes.

She nods her head at the unspoken words. "Yeah. He's your son, Grant. He should have your name. Partially because I don't have one myself, but also because you're his dad." A small thump hits against her palm and her smile widens. "Here, give me your hand." She reaches out and takes one of his hands, holding it up against her stomach. "You're going to love this. I just hope he does it again."

A few seconds pass before two more thumps happen in quick succession and she watches as his body stills. Another thump against their hands and then he's smiling bigger than she's ever seen him smile before and it warms her heart.

"That's...that's…"

She smiles and nods. "Yeah, that's our boy, Grant. That's Adian. And he's saying welcome back."

.

.

.

Despite being awake and feeling better, Grant's instructed to remain in the medbay for at least another day for observation. They want to make sure that everything is healing properly and there won't be any problems moving forward.

Thankfully for him, Skye decides to stay right there with him while he keeps recovering, which he is very happy about.

It's only a few hours since the doctor left when Skye finally speaks up. She's sitting next to his bed, her tablet in her lap and her phone on the small table next to them.

"Lisa yelled at Coulson."

His brows furrow and he looks away from the book in his hands. "What?"

"When she found out that Coulson sent you undercover in Hydra she yelled at him. At least, that's what Trip told me. I didn't actually witness it because I've been in here the whole time. But he told me that Lisa got very heated on your behalf."

He shifts in his bed. "We were talking about that. Before Coulson had me go."

Skye nods. "So she knew a lot about what you went through in Hydra."

He nods. "Yeah. Garrett...he…" He sucks in a sharp breath at the thought of the other man and everything he went through because of him.

She places a hand softly on his arm. "Hey, it's okay. You don't need to say it."

He gives her a small, grateful smile.

She leans back in her seat, her hand returning to her belly. "I was scared."

His brows furrow. "What?"

She sighs. "When you were gone, I was scared."

"You were?"

She nods. "Yeah." She locks her tablet and turns in her chair to face him. "You came to me and told me that you came up with a name for the baby, but before you could tell me what it was you got whisked away to some secret mission that no one would tell me about and then you came back and you're all beat up and I thought you wouldn't survive and I just—"

"Hey hey hey," he says quickly, cutting her off and reaching out to grab onto one of her hands, hoping to stop her near sobbing. "I'm okay, Skye. I'm here, with you and Adian, and I'm alive. And I'm going to be okay for a long time." He gives her hand a gentle squeeze, still not quite believing that she was so worried about him while he was gone.

Leaving her was the last thing that he wanted to do. Though in his mind, he still thought she hated him when he left, and that she would always hate him.

But now things are starting to look up for him, he's probably going to be able to have an actual relationship with his son.

At the thought of his son, he focuses on Skye again, seeing her head tilted down and her fingers absentmindedly playing with his.

"How are you feeling?" he asks her. "How's the baby doing?"

She lets out a breath, glancing up at him. "He's good. He missed you."

"Yeah?"

She nods. "It was...I was pretty worried while you were gone, and I was talking to myself, well, talking to the baby, I guess, and then he...he kicked. I was such a mess when it happened, I kept thinking about how you should have been there when it happened, and I wasn't sure if you ever would be."

"The important thing is that I'm here now, okay? And I promise you right now that I'm going to do everything in my power to make sure that I'm always around. For you and for Adian."

She smiles softly at him. "I love that he has a name now."

He smiles back. "Me too."

.

.

.

"Alright," Abby speaks up as she removes the blood pressure cuff from around Grant's arm, "you need to remember to take things easy since you're still recovering."

"I'll make sure he takes it easy," Skye says to the older woman from her place in the chair next to the bed. "The last thing I need is for him to injure himself even more because he was being stupid and then not be able to help me with Adian once he gets here."

"Hey, I'll never let that happen," he says softly to her, reaching out to grab her hand. "I'm never going to leave you to take care of Adian on your own."

"Not on purpose, I know. But you can be pretty stubborn if you want to be. That's one trait of yours that I hope our son does not inherit. And sometimes accidents can happen no matter how careful we are."

"I've told you time and time again that I am going to do everything I can to be in the best shape for when Adian comes so I can help out as much as possible."

She smiles softly at him. "I know you will. And I appreciate that." She gives him one more smile before looking up at Abby. "Is he really free to go now?"

Abby smiles and nods. "Yes, he is. You'll make sure he takes his medication?"

Skye nods. "Absolutely. I'll make sure he sticks to the advice you've given him for his recovery. And I'm sure Lisa will too. Even if he doesn't want to listen at first." She tosses Grant a playful glare.

"I just don't want anything inhibiting me from taking care of you or Adian."

"Then you'll adhere to all the rules and advice for your recovery so your leg can heal and you can be at your best for when Adian does finally get here."

He sighs. "Fine. I just...I want to be a good father."

She smiles softly. "You being here is a start," she tells him honestly. "And saying that you want to be a good father, that right there tells me that you are going to be a good father. Just try not to worry too much, okay? We're gonna be fine."

He nods. "I know. Now."

"Good." She looks up at Abby. "Is he good to go now?"

Abby nods. "Yes, he's good to go. But I do want to see him in a week to make sure everything is healing as it should be."

"I'll make sure he gets here," she tells the older woman, grabbing the crutches Grant is supposed to start using and handing them to him as he sits up in the bed. He tries to wave off the crutches but he succumbs with a single, well-placed glare. She smiles. She's still got it. She's glad that pregnancy hasn't lessened her ability to get him to do what she wants. If anything, it's probably heightened it.

She finishes discussing a few things with Abby about Grant's recovery before they're walking out of the med bay and down the hall toward Grant's bunk. She has one hand under her bump and the other on her lower back as she shuffles along beside him.

Neither of them says much on their way through the hall, ignoring some of the looks they're getting from various agents they pass by.

By now, everyone on the base knows that Grant is the father of her child, and now that Grant's actually there and walking around, she's only slightly worried of what might happen down the line. Knowing that she has Trip and Fitz in her corner, though, and that they'll do anything to protect her and her baby, makes her feel a little better about everything.

"Do you, uh, do you want some help inside?" she asks him once they reach his bunk.

He shakes his head. "No, thanks. I should be fine. Thanks for being there, though."

She gives him a small smile and shrugs. "No problem. I'm going to be in the lounge for a little while, so just come and find me if you need anything, okay?"

"Shouldn't I be the one telling you to find me if you need anything?"

She shrugs again. "Maybe typically. But you're also the one who's severely injured while I'm just pregnant. Just try not to overdo it, okay?"

"I will do my best."

She nods once. "Good. I'll see you later, then." She gives him a tight smile before turning around and making her way down the hall toward the lounge, eager to get off her feet again.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So? What did you think? Let me know in a review down below. I'd love to hear your thoughts.
> 
> Also, I'm working on a new Skyeward story and I need as many twitter/Tumblr handles as I can get. If you want yours to be featured, just let me know. :)
> 
> Until next time,  
> Jellybean96 out!


	18. Chapter 18

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey babes! Back again with a new chapter! Apologies for not updating sooner, but I've been working a lot lately and dealing with some other stuff. But I have some time tonight and thought I'd post this new one for ya.
> 
> Enjoy!

* * *

Being injured is definitely at the top of his list of things that he hates. Injuries mean you can't do most of the things that you normally do when you're uninjured. Which means he can't be up on his feet all day to be there for Skye to help her out with whatever she needs. That's all he wanted to do since he found out she was pregnant, to help her out in whatever way he can to make her pregnancy go as smooth as possible. And now he's physically limited in what he can actually do to help.

Falling down onto his bed, he drops his crutches to the ground and heaves out a sigh as he pulls himself the rest of the way onto the mattress and leans back against the headboard. There's still so much they have to do to get ready for Adian's arrival, and he also has to take things easy which means he can't do as much as he wants to. And he still has to see Lisa from time to time to discuss whatever's going on inside his head.

Reaching over to the small bedside table, he pulls an old SHIELD tablet that's been refurbished into his lap. Fitz gave it to him not too long ago after installing a few security measures and blocks on it, probably for Coulson's sanity. He doesn't really mind it, though. He mainly plans on using the tablet for researching baby stuff and catching up on various events he may have missed while being locked up. He's always liked to be up on current happenings in the world.

After a while, he grows bored with the tablet, setting it aside and plugging it into its charger.

Sighing as he looks around the room, he realizes that he really doesn't have much to entertain himself aside from a few books he's found. He never had much of a problem with boredom before, but something like it is hitting him hard.

His eyes land on a familiar cardboard box on the desk in the room and his mind wanders to the Polaroid camera he had found right before he left.

His brows furrow together as he tries to remember where he left it; if someone accidentally tossed it out without realizing it was his. Then again, he wouldn't be surprised if someone threw it out simply because it is his.

Grabbing his crutches off the floor when he finally remembers what he did with it, he makes his way out of the room as quickly as he can. He hopes it's still where he left it.

Passing a few agents in the hall, he ignores the stares and whispers directed his way, much more important things on his mind than dealing with other people.

Finally reaching the lounge, he hobbles inside and moves to one of the shelves at the back of the room, his eyes scanning the area.

"A-ha!" he exclaims quietly when he sees it. He carefully reaches over a few items to get to the camera. "I am so glad you're still here," he says to the camera, feeling only a little weird for taking to an inanimate object.

"Grant? What are you doing back there?"

He quickly turns around, fumbling a little on his crutches, and gives Skye a quick smile. He's still not quite used to hearing his first name coming from her ever since he got back, but he's certainly not going to complain about it. "Skye, hey. I didn't see you there."

"Clearly. So what are you doing?"

"I uh, I was just coming to get my camera." He holds the item up to show her. "I forgot that I left it in here before I left."

"That's a Polaroid camera, right?"

He nods. "Yeah. I'm surprised that such a modern tech fanatic like yourself knows what one of these is," he teases her.

She rolls her eyes. "I'm not that bad, okay? Plus, they have more hi-tech versions of those now."

He sighs. "Of course they do. The world can never be satisfied with things how they are. There's something so much more magical about Polaroid photos than there is about digital prints."

She nods. "I know what you mean."

His brows furrow. "You do?"

"Yeah. The uh, the doctor gave me this when they told me you were out of surgery. He said it was on you when they brought you in."

He steps forward to take the paper she's holding out to him and his breath hitches at the sight of the photo he took of her before he left. He remembers having it on him the whole time while undercover, wanting to have them as close as possible to him while he was away. He never brought it out when he was around other people, though, choosing instead to look at it when he was alone, completely sure that there were no prying eyes anywhere close.

"You were never supposed to see this," he says quickly. "I took this picture right before I left. I kept it with me so it was like I could still have a part of you and Adian with me to keep me strong."

"If you had that on you...am I the reason you're like this right now?"

He quickly looks up to see the tears forming in her eyes. He wants to lie to her, spare her the hard truth, tell her that it wasn't because of the photo. That it was some other reason entirely different. But he promised her he was done lying to her.

He sighs. "Yes. The section of Hydra I was infiltrating, some of them knew me because of Garrett. They accidentally found the photo one day and told me that I was weak, that Garrett would be ashamed of me. And then that's when they started beating on me."

"Grant, I'm so sorry that that happened to you. I never…"

He shakes his head. "Hey, it's fine. I'm alive, that's all that matters. I did manage to do what I needed to do while I was there, though, so it wasn't a total loss. That's one more Hydra cell that's being taken care of."

"Still, I'm not going to be able to help that every time I'll see that picture from now on, I'll be thinking about how I basically almost got you killed."

"Then we'll have to have some new photos with better memories attached to them for you. Like right now."

He immediately holds up the camera and does his best to focus on Skye.

She sighs and looks away. "Grant, stop it. I look gross right now."

"No, you don't. You look absolutely beautiful."

She narrows her eyes at him and he snaps the photo.

"You really took a picture of that?"

"Mm-hmm." He nods as he takes the photo from the slot and waits for it to develop. Once it does, he holds it up so she can see it. The top of her baby bump is just barely visible at the bottom of the image. "I think it's a pretty good one."

She rolls her eyes at him. "You would think that."

He ducks his head and laughs quietly, tucking the photo away safely. "Do you need anything while I'm here?" he asks, looking back up at her.

She shakes her head. "No, thanks. I think I'm good for right now."

"Okay. Just uh, just let me know if you need anything? I know Trip has been helping you out a lot, and I'm injured so I can't do much, but I still want to help when I can."

She smiles softly at him. "I know. And if I need something that you can help me with, I will let you know."

"Great. I'll leave you to whatever you're doing, then. I think I need to get off my feet anyway."

Skye snorts and runs a hand over her stomach. "Oh, I know that feeling very well."

He smiles at the sight, wishing he had more blank Polaroids with him so he could snap a picture. Deciding to leave the room like he said he would, Grant manages to hang onto the camera as he hobbles out of the lounge and back down the hall to his room.

Pulling the photo from just a few minutes ago out of his pocket once he reaches his bed, he stares down at it with a content smile on his face. He and Skye may not actually be together at this point, but she's still pregnant with his child, and that's more than he ever thought he'd have.

Setting the photo aside, he makes a decision right then and there to make a book of photos for his son, to show him his life as he grows up and becomes the person he's meant to be.

He knows there are still a few months left in the pregnancy, but he can't wait for his son to arrive, he can't wait to see who the boy is going to take after more in his looks and personality.

He just hopes he can be a good dad and do right by his son, that's all he wants.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So? What did you think? Let me know in a review down below. I'd love to hear your thoughts.
> 
> Also, working on a new Skyeward story and I need some twitter handles/tumblr urls for it. If you want yours to be featured, let me know. :)
> 
> Until next time,  
> Jellybean96 out!


	19. Chapter 19

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey babes! Back again with a new one for ya! This one's pretty fun, and you'll see why soon enough. We're getting close to the end of this story, which is a little bittersweet. But have no fear, because I am almost finished writing the sequel. Then I just have to go through and make sure everything is how it should be and then I'll post. Hopefully, it won't be too long after this one is done that I'll start posting the sequel.
> 
> But for now, enjoy!

* * *

Scrolling through the multiple pages of baby items on Amazon and Target, Skye lets out a heavy sigh, one hand rubbing over her stomach when her son lands a particularly harsh kick to her insides. She winces when he lands another one.

"Geez, kid, why do you keep doing that? And why do you need so much stuff, too? This is ridiculous."

She continues looking through the various items she needs, making a list on her laptop of what she'll need so that she can go through later and find the absolute best items for her baby. She knows she still has a few months left of her pregnancy, but from everything she's read since finding out about her baby, is that the time passes by quicker than you think it will. And that's definitely been happening for her.

One minute she was finding out she's pregnant with the baby of the man who betrayed all of them and shattered her heart in the process, and the next she knows she's sitting by the father of her baby's hospital bedside hoping that he'll pull through so she won't have to raise their baby alone.

Granted, that's probably not what any of the blogs meant, but she's pretty sure none of them have ever been in her exact situation, so she's taking creative license there.

Shifting on the bed when she starts getting slightly uncomfortable, she continues scrolling through the various items available, as well as their prices. She obviously wants to get the best that she can for her baby, but she's starting to see a trend in all the best products costing an arm and a leg.

Money isn't her biggest issue, still having some funds saved away in old bank accounts from odd jobs she'd taken over the years. None of the accounts are linked to her actual person, so they weren't touched by anyone when they were all labeled fugitives. But she does have to be a little more careful when accessing them than she ever was before.

Another heavy sigh escapes as she adds yet another necessary item to her ever-growing list.

"Who is it?" she asks when she hears the light knock at her door.

"It's your baby's favorite Uncle."

She laughs quietly before hitting a few particular commands on her keyboard, unlocking her bunk door. "Come in."

The door slides open and she can hear Trip's feet against the cement.

"Hey, you busy right now?"

She looks up from her laptop, taking notice of the eager smile on her friend's face. "Um, kind of? Why?"

"I need you to come with me."

She tilts her head. "Where? And for what?"

"Do you trust me?" he asks her.

She nods without hesitation. "Absolutely."

"Great. So come with me."

She sighs and sets her laptop aside, allowing Trip to help her up off her bed. Getting up and down is definitely becoming more difficult as the days go by. Most days she would prefer to just remain curled up in her bed, as she was just doing, but then she wouldn't be able to interact with anyone. And supposedly, continued human interaction is good for people.

"Where are we going, Trip?" she asks him as they make their way through the hallways, one hand resting under her bump and the other hanging onto Trip. "I need to get off my feet soon."

"We're almost there," he assures her, guiding her through the halls.

She lets out a soft grunt as Adian kicks at her insides, something that's been happening quite a lot lately.

"You good?" Trip asks her.

She nods. "Yeah, I'm fine. Adian's just rolling around a lot which doesn't make it easy to stay comfortable for any significant length of time."

"Oh, I'm sorry about that."

She shrugs. "It's fine. I've heard it's all part of the magic, but I think I'm gonna have to call b.s. on that. It's easier to handle when I'm sitting down, though."

"Well lucky for you we have now arrived at our destination."

She follows his line of sight to the entrance of the lounge. Her brows furrow. "What are we doing here?"

"You'll see. Come on."

They move through the open doorway and into the lounge, her breath immediately catching in her throat when she sees everything set up before her.

"Is this...is this what I think it is?" she asks as her eyes scan over the barely decorated room, a single banner hanging at one end of the room reading 'IT'S A BOY!' in giant letters. A table is set up underneath it with a small pile of wrapped presents. Another table off to the side has an array of snacks.

"It's your baby shower," Trip tells her excitedly. "Well, our version of a baby shower. None of us have ever actually been to one before so we weren't exactly sure what to do. But we did some research and put this together the best we could."

She quickly wipes at her eyes. "No, it's perfect, you guys. Thank you." She glances around the room and finds Grant hovering in one corner, an awkward smile on his face. "Did you have something to do with this?" she asks him curiously.

He shakes his head. "No, this was all Fitz and Trip's doing. I just found out about it when Fitz dragged me in here."

"I didn't drag you," Fitz counters. "You're too big for that."

"I know," Grant says, his smile growing softer. "It was just an expression."

"Oh, right, yeah."

"So is it just going to be us four, then?" she asks the room, already moving toward the couch to sit down.

Trip nods as he sits down in one of the seats across from her. "Yeah. I asked a few others but everyone else said they were busy."

She fights hard to keep her tears from falling. She's not that surprised that no one else is going to show up. She wasn't even expecting to have any kind of party.

"Well that's their loss, then," she says with as big of a smile as she can muster. She is a little sad that some of the others didn't want to join in celebrating her baby, but she knows they're still upset about things.

"It most certainly is," Trip agrees. "Let's get this thing started then. I should tell you now that we aren't really going to be doing the whole game thing, partly because there's only four of us."

"That's fine," she assures him. "I don't mind, really. I'm just glad that there are some people here who actually want to celebrate this baby." She places a hand on her stomach with a smile. "Even if it's just the four of us, this baby is going to be very well loved, I know that for a fact."

.

.

.

"If he has to leave the room to get it, then I think this is going to be your biggest present yet," Grant tells her as Trip walks out of the room to retrieve the final gift of the party.

"I think you're right." She's already opened every present that was stacked on the table. Then Trip told her that there was one more. She's already gotten a lot of stuff for the baby, stuff that she'd been putting on her list, stuff that she doesn't have to worry about buying now.

There's a part of her that's still amazed that Trip and Fitz managed to get it all for her by themselves, just the two of them. Her baby really is the luckiest boy in the world.

"Alright, girl, here's your last gift."

Focusing her eyes at the entrance of the room, she gasps and tears immediately spring to her eyes when she sees what Trip is pushing into the room on a rolling cart. "Is that...is that a crib?"

Trip nods. "Yeah. Fitz came up with the designs and then I helped him put it together."

"When did you guys find the time to do something like this?" she asks curiously. "This is seriously amazing."

"We worked on it little by little," Trip tells her. "We started on it not too long after you told us about the baby."

"Grant, help me up." She holds a hand out to him and he doesn't hesitate in helping her off the couch. She makes a beeline for the crib, running her hands over the smoothed down wood that they must have ordered from somewhere because she's pretty sure they don't just have a supply of wood sitting around.

She runs her hands over it, admiring how polished it is and how simple, yet intricate the design is. Running her hand over the back headboard, she smiles at her son's name etched into the wood.

"You put his name in it."

Trip nods with a smile. "Yeah. That was my idea. Do you like it?"

"I love it. It's perfect." She turns and gives Trip a hug the best that she can with her stomach getting in the way. She then crosses the room to pull Fitz into a hug as well. "Thank you, Fitz. I love the crib."

"It's sturdy," he tells her. "Better than anything you could buy."

"Since you designed it, I'm sure that it is."

"It'll fit perfectly in your room, too," he says. "I made sure it would."

"That's really great, Fitz, thank you. The baby is going to love it."

"Um, he won't be able to appreciate it as an infant."

Skye smiles and laughs quietly. "I know, Fitz. And really, the crib is beautiful, thank you."

"You're welcome."

She admires the crib a moment longer before turning around to find Grant still sitting on the couch, his Polaroid camera up in front of his face.

"Have you been taking pictures this whole time?" she asks him.

He lowers the camera and nods. "Yeah. But not of everything. I don't want to waste all the paper. Just of what I think is most important for Adian to see when he's older."

She smiles softly. "That's sweet. Now get over here and check out this crib our friends made us."

He sets the camera aside and then joins her at the crib, running his own hands over the smooth wooden frame, his fingers tracing over their son's name.

"It's perfect," he says aloud.

She nods in agreement. "It really is. And because of this party, I don't have to worry about getting as much stuff as I had originally planned."

"That's good. And uh, I can help out a little with buying stuff for the baby. I still have some funds stashed away in old safe houses that SHIELD doesn't know about, so they're still safe."

"How are you going to access them when we're all still fugitives and you can't leave the base?"

She watches his brows furrow. "I didn't think about that."

"It's fine. And I've got enough money for right now to handle things. I hope." She bites her lip between her teeth, hoping that she really does have enough money. She's heard and read that babies are expensive. The last thing she wants to do is blow a fortune on her son before he's even born, but she also wants him to have the best childhood that he can.

Looking up at Grant still admiring the crib, she smiles softly. "Hey, I have something I want to talk to you about."

"What's up?"

"I uh, I talked to Coulson the other day, about you, and I think...I think it might be a good idea if you move to the empty bunk next to mine. So you can be closer once the baby gets here and be able to help out easier."

He smiles. "That would...that would be really great."

"Actually," Trip speaks up as he steps forward, "that may be a bit of a problem."

Skye looks to him and frowns. "What? Why?"

"Because besides the crib, Fitz and I were working on something else for you two."

"What is it?"

Trip smiles. "Come with me." He gestures to the hallway and then makes his way out the door.

Skye shares a quick look with Grant before slowly following after Trip. They move back through the hallway toward her bunk and her brows furrow together.

"Why are we going back to my bunk?" she asks as they get closer.

"We aren't."

"So then where are we going?"

"Right here," Trip says, stopping in front of the door next to hers.

"This is the bunk next to mine."

Trip nods with a smile. "I know."

"And I talked to Coulson about Grant using it."

"I know. But...I actually beat you to that and talked to Coulson about using this for someone else."

"Who else…" she trails off when the gears start turning in her head. She gasps quietly. "You didn't."

"Open the door and find out."

She takes a small step forward and easily opens the door since there's no passcode to put in yet.

Pushing the door open, she lets out another gasp at the sight in front of her. The walls are no longer a dull gray, but a now pale blue, shiny silver robots patterned all across the paint. Multiple empty shelves line the walls.

"You made us a nursery?"

"This is incredible, you guys," Grant chimes in.

"The shelves are empty so you can put whatever you want to on them, and there should be plenty of space to put all the furniture we got you."

She doesn't fight the tears as they start to spill over at the sweet gesture from her friends.

"Um, she's crying," Fitz speaks up. "Why is she crying? Crying's not good. Did we do it wrong?"

Skye shakes her head and smiles through her tears. "No, Fitz, you didn't do it wrong. It's amazing. Really. Thank you. Both of you." She smiles over at Trip. "I grew up without a family, without people who really cared about me. And I thought for a long time that it was always going to be like that. And now...now I know that my baby isn't going to feel like that. Because he has a very dedicated father and two amazing uncles to help look after him. This is...this is good. Really, really good."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So? What did you think? Let me know in a review down below. I'd love to hear your thoughts.
> 
> Until next time,  
> Jellybean96 out!


	20. Chapter 20

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey babes! Back again with a new chapter! Sorry it's been a while since I updated, I've been really busy with work and other things. But I'm here with a new chapter for you.
> 
> Enjoy!

Since the day of Skye's baby shower, Grant has done everything he can to keep proving to her that he's changed, that he really is a good man. Or, at least, some semblance of one.

Coulson allowed him to move into the bunk that's one away from Skye's, Adian's nursery settled nicely between theirs. At one point he'd thought about asking if they could knock down the walls between their two rooms and the nursery, or at least put a couple of doors there to make things easier when they need to get to Adian at night. But he realized it probably wouldn't be much appreciated by their son as he gets older. That is, if they're still living on the base as Adian grows up. He doesn't want his son to be confined to the base as a child, he wants him out in the world interacting with kids his own age. But for now, the base is as good as it's going to get.

When it came to setting up the nursery, he did what he was able to do. He helped put the furniture together after Trip and another, slightly reluctant, agent hauled everything into the room. There's a part of him that can't believe neither of them thought about a nursery for their son until Trip revealed the one that he and Fitz designed and decorated for them. But then again, they had plenty of other things on their minds.

While setting everything up, he deferred to Skye on how exactly to do that. He knew she'd be the one that would be up most of the night early on with Adian so he wanted her to be able to set things up how she'd need them to be.

Besides getting things ready for Adian's arrival, he's also been doing what he can to help his leg heal properly. Unfortunately, he hasn't been able to do much besides just staying off of it. His physical therapy won't start until after his cast is off, and he still has a few days left until that happens.

In the meantime, since he can't go out into the field for the moment, he's been providing whatever information he can about Hydra to help take them down once and for all. It's been a little weird for him, to give up all of these secrets that he used to keep so close to his chest because that's what was expected of him. But now things are different for him, now he's going to be a father and he only wants to do right by his son. And he's trying his hardest to fulfill that, even before his son is born.

.

.

.

"Big day for you today."

He glances up to see Skye standing at the other end of the lounge, in the kitchenette. At nearly nine months pregnant she still looks as beautiful to him as she always has. The fact that she's pregnant with his baby just makes her even more beautiful in his eyes.

"You're finally getting your cast off."

He glances down at his elevated leg. "Yeah, I am."

"You're probably glad to be able to walk on it again."

He shrugs. "I guess. I'm just glad I won't be wearing this thing when Adian's born. That's not the kind of memory I want to have of that day."

"Yeah, that's a good point."

"Hey, are you okay on your feet?" he asks her. "Shouldn't you be resting? You're getting close to your due date."

"I've still got a couple of weeks left," she tells him. "Besides, walking around is supposed to help induce labor."

"Then shouldn't you be waiting until you get closer to your due date? You don't want him to be born too early."

She waves him off. "I'll be fine. Walking around actually helps relieve some other stuff too."

His brows furrow. "What kind of other stuff?"

She shakes her head. "Nothing you need to worry about, I promise. Do you want anything?" she asks him, gesturing to the open cupboards. "I'm hungry but I don't know what I want."

"I'm good. Thank you, though."

"Okay. Let me know after you've got your cast off?"

He nods. "Of course. But uh, you don't want to come with? Not that I was expecting that you'd want to, I just thought...actually, I don't know what I thought. Sorry, forget I said anything. I'll be sure to let you know when my cast is off."

He turns quickly back to what he'd been doing before Skye started speaking to him, focusing all of his attention on it with furrowed brows.

How could he be so stupid as to think she'd actually want to spend more time with him than she already has to because of Adian? Maybe he really is crazy.

.

.

.

"Good, you're here."

"Hi, Abby." He gives the woman a small hint of a smile, his hands rubbing against the fabric of his jeans as he sits on the metal table.

"Why do you seem so nervous, dear?" she asks him.

"Uh, no reason, really. Just a little excited about finally getting my cast off. I don't like being so restricted."

She nods. "Yes, I understand how that might be a bit annoying." She shuffles around the area, gathering everything that she needs for the procedure. "So, you're ready to get your cast off, then?"

He nods. "Absolutely."

"And I presume you've followed my directions and have stayed off of it as much as possible?"

"It sucked, but yes, I did."

"Good. Let's get started, then."

Silence envelopes them as Abby begins removing the cast, cutting through the material with a small saw blade and a pair of scissors.

His mind wanders as she does what she needs to do. He's never really had the luxury of letting his mind wander. He's always had to be on guard, always aware of everything that's around him so he can protect himself.

And to a certain extent, he still does that, the need to always be wary ingrained in him from his youth. Not just because of Garrett, but because of his so-called family too. He never knew when his brother would strike, making his life hell. It's gotten better since he started talking to Lisa, but sometimes he still finds himself deep into that headspace.

Shaking his head, he tries to clear those thoughts away. Now is not the time to think about such depressing things. Now is the time to celebrate.

He's getting his cast off. He's in a fairly good spot with Skye. He's going to have a son.

He still finds it hard to believe sometimes that he's actually going to be a father. He never thought he'd get the chance, that with the life he was living, he'd be long dead before he ever even got a sliver of an opportunity to be a dad. And now he's actually getting that chance. He just doesn't want to screw any of it up. That's what he's the most worried about.

"And we're all done."

Pulling himself from his thoughts, he looks up to find Abby smiling softly at him. Her eyes flick down and he follows her line of sight to see his leg now free of its cast. He gently flexes his foot, flinching a little at how tight it is.

"Wow."

"Feels good to have it back, doesn't it?"

He nods. "Yeah. Definitely."

"Just try not to exert yourself too much while you're getting the hang of things again. And you still need to be using those crutches while you get used to putting weight back on your leg. And don't forget about those exercises I gave to you."

"I promise I won't forget. Skye will probably be reminding me all the time about them."

"As she should," Abby says with a small nod. "We both want you to be in your best shape for when that little baby of yours is born."

"Trust me, I want to be at my best too. I can't let him down, or Skye."

"Just don't put too much pressure on yourself to be a perfect parent, alright? No parent is perfect, there's no manual to raising a child, just tips and tricks. But every child is different so not everything will work with yours. You have to find what works and stick with it."

He sighs. "I just want to be better than my own father was, I don't want my son to hate me as he grows up. I want him to know that I'm always going to be here for him, no matter what."

She smiles softly at him. "Something tells me you're already off to a good start."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So? What did you think? Let me know in a review down below. I'd love to hear your thoughts.
> 
> Only two chapters left! But then there's a sequel! :)
> 
> Until next time,  
> Jellybean96 out!


	21. Chapter 21

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey babes! Got a new one for ya! There's only one more chapter after this one but then...there's going to be a sequel. :)
> 
> So enjoy!

Despite everything she's read online so far, none of it has really prepared her for what she's been dealing with throughout the entirety of her pregnancy. There's only so much a book or blog can tell you because every pregnancy is different and special. Children are a gift that you should always treasure and be grateful for.

But with less than two weeks left of her pregnancy, she's not feeling in a very grateful mood.

Glancing down at her large baby belly as she paces her room, she runs her hand over it in a soothing manner. "Please hurry up, kid. I love you, but you really need to get out here. I don't know how much more I can take."

A soft knock on her door pulls her attention to it. "Hello?"

"Hey, it's me. Just checking in."

She smiles softly at hearing Grant on the other side. "You can come in." She'd given him an override code for her room for the last stretch of her pregnancy in case of an emergency. He hasn't needed to use it yet, and she knows that he won't abuse it either. Not when he's trying to get back in her good graces.

A few seconds later, the door slides open and he's stepping inside, closing the door securely behind him. He looks at her with furrowed brows. "You okay?"

She nods. "Yeah. I'm fine. Just some annoying contractions."

His eyes go comically wide and she nearly laughs. "Contractions? Skye, why didn't you say anything? We need to get you to Abby so she can st-"

"Grant, relax, please."

"How can I relax when you just told me that you've been having contractions?"

"They're not real contractions."

His brows furrow again. "They're not?"

She shakes her head. "No, they're not. They're Braxton Hicks contractions and I've been having them for a while now. They're just to get my body ready for delivery."

He breathes out. "Oh. Sorry."

She shrugs. "Don't be sorry. You didn't know. I didn't either at first. I definitely started panicking."

"But I should have known. I've spent so much time reading parenting books that I didn't think about books about pregnancy. I'm an idiot."

"Hey, you are not an idiot. Don't ever say that again, okay?"

He nods slowly. "Okay."

"Good." She takes a deep breath. "Now, is there a specific reason you came in here…?" she lets her question trail off, quirking an eyebrow at him.

He shakes his head. "Uh, no, not really. I just wanted to check on you, that's all."

"Well, I appreciate that. And how are you doing?" she asks him. "How's your leg?"

He glances down at the appendage and then back up. "It's a little weird without the cast since I was actually starting to get used to it."

"Yeah, I've heard that happens. It feels good, though, right?"

He nods. "Definitely. I'm really just glad that the first time Adian sees me it won't be with the cast. Even though he wouldn't remember it when he's older, I'd remember. And that's not how I want him to see me."

She frowns at Grant's obvious need to be seen as perfect in their son's eyes. Or at least, as near perfect as he can get. She has a feeling that a lot of it stems from how his own father treated him as he was growing up, and that he doesn't want to be a repeat of that in any way. She can't say she blames him for thinking that way. She just wishes he wouldn't be so hard on himself.

She reaches out to place a gentle hand on his arm, smiling softly. "Hey, Adian is going to love you, okay? No matter what. I promise."

.

.

.

"What are you doing?"

She looks up from her tablet to find Grant standing near the entrance to the lounge, his brows furrowed slightly as he watches her. She glances back at the tablet before looking at him again. "Oh, uh, I'm going to watch a movie. It kinda helps me to relax and take my mind off of other things. Plus, I think Adian really likes it since he seems to settle down whenever I watch one."

"Oh, that's nice."

"Yeah." She shifts in her spot. "Hey, do you maybe...want to watch one with me?"

He shrugs. "Sure. If you're really okay with it."

"I wouldn't have asked if I wasn't," she tells him. She pats the space of couch next to her. "Now come sit. Get anything you want to snack on while I get the movie loaded."

"Are we going to watch it on your tablet?" he asks, making his way over to the kitchen.

She shakes her head, focusing on the small screen. "No. I'm going to set it up to play on the TV."

"Do you want me to hook it up to the TV so you don't have to move?"

"No thanks. It's wireless so all it takes is a few taps of my screen and then...we have a connection." She smiles brightly, looking up at the TV screen across from her.

"Wow. Nice."

"Thanks."

"So what are we watching?" he asks, sitting down next to her and setting his snacks on the coffee table.

She simply smiles and gestures at the screen.

He looks at it and tilts his head. " _The Breakfast Club_. Never seen it."

Her jaw drops involuntarily. "You've never seen  _The Breakfast Club_?"

He shakes his head. "No, I haven't."

"Well, that just seals the deal right there, then. We're definitely watching it. This movie is a classic and you have to watch it at least once in your lifetime."

"Then I guess it's a good thing I'm watching it now."

She nods her head. "Yes, it is." She taps a few more times on her tablet before setting it aside and plugging it into its charger. She settles back against the cushion behind her as the opening credits start to play, grabbing her own bowl of snacks and setting it in her lap.

"That's what you're eating?"

She pauses, her eyes never leaving the TV screen. "Are you really going to criticize a pregnant woman's diet?"

"I'm sorry, I just...shouldn't you be eating healthier foods? You're carrying our baby, Skye."

She huffs. "Believe me, I know. And don't put all the blame on me for eating this stuff. Your son has a lot to do with my cravings. And I've been craving a lot of junk food and extremely unhealthy foods."

He sighs. "I guess there's not much I can do about your eating habits at this point."

"No there is not, and it's good that you recognized that. Now shush, the movie's starting."

She shifts a little in her spot to get more comfortable as she focuses on the TV screen, trying to ignore the heat she can feel from Grant, no doubt that his eyes are on her.

.

.

.

"Alright, I've got to admit that that was a pretty good movie."

She looks at him. "You really think so?"

He nods. "Absolutely. Then again, I don't really have much to compare it to. I didn't watch a lot of movies over my lifetime."

"At St. Agnes we were only allowed to watch movies that were approved by the nuns, so it was a lot of gospel movies with a few regular cartoons mixed in. Whenever I went to a new home, I made sure to watch as many movies as I could before I inevitably got sent back."

He frowns. "You were always sure you were going to get sent back, weren't you?"

She sighs and nods, shifting on the couch. "Yeah. The first few times, I was hopeful that I'd get to stay and have a real family. Over time, I started hoping less and less, until eventually, I stopped hoping altogether."

"I'm really sorry you had to go through that."

She shrugs. "I'm over it now. I've moved past that all and don't dwell on it too much anymore."

"That's good."

"Yeah, I just want to forget about all of that and just focus on this little guy." She smiles down at her stomach, running her hands over it. "I want to give him the absolute life that any child can have. I mean, I wish we didn't have to raise him on this base, because he should get to live in a house with a big backyard to run around in, and a nice school to go to where he can make friends and actually be a kid."

"I want that for him too," Grant tells her. "And I promise you that the first chance we get, I am going to get you both that house. Whatever it takes. You both deserve it."

"You deserve a good house too, Grant."

He shakes his head. "You and Adian deserve one way more than I do."

"Let's agree to disagree, then."

He smiles. "Okay."

She smiles back before glancing down at her tablet, scrolling through the list of movies she has downloaded onto it. "Ooh,  _Sixteen Candles_. That's another classic." She looks up at him. "I'm going to guess that you haven't seen that one either."

"You would be correct."

"Do you want to watch it?"

"Can we rain check for another time?" he asks. "I want to watch it, but I need to go and do my PT before it gets to be too much later."

"Oh, yeah, no, totally. Your PT is way more important than watching another movie. Is next week good for you to watch it?"

He nods. "Yeah, it should be."

"Great. I'll see you then, I guess."

"Yeah." He gives her a small smile before grabbing his crutches to help stand from the couch so he doesn't put too much pressure on his leg, and then slowly makes his way out of the room.

Relaxing back into the couch, Skye focuses her attention on the tablet in her hands, closing out of the movie listing and pulling up the various baby websites she's always perusing.

There isn't much time left until their baby is going to arrive and she wants to be as prepared as humanly possible.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So? What did you think? Let me know down below. I'd love to hear your thoughts.
> 
> Until next time,  
> Jellybean96 out!


	22. Chapter 22

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey babes! Back again with a new chapter for ya! This is the final chapter in this story, and it's one that I'm sure you've all been waiting for since the very beginning.
> 
> Enjoy!

"I can't believe he's going to be here soon," Grant mutters as he and Skye relax together on the couch in the lounge, a random movie playing out on the screen across from them. They'd finished watching  _Sixteen Candles_  a little while ago and neither of them wanted to move but didn't want there to just be silence surrounding them the entire time. So they'd put on another movie to fill the space.

"Neither can I," Skye replies, rubbing a hand up and down her enlarged belly, breathing in and out deeply. "It honestly seems like hardly any time has passed since I found out I was pregnant."

"How did you feel?" he asks her curiously. "When you found out about him, how did you feel? And you don't need to try and spare my feelings, okay? I want to know the truth about it."

She breathes in deeply, shifting a little on the couch. "Honestly? I was scared. And upset. And happy. All at the same time."

"Really?"

She nods. "Yeah. I was scared because I don't know the first thing about being a mom, and it's not like I have my own mom here to help me by giving me tips and stuff. I was upset because I was going to have this constant reminder about what went down between us before everything went to hell and I had my heart stomped on and shattered. But I was also really happy because at one point in my life it was my biggest dream to be a mom, and be better than my own parents were because they were never even there." She looks up at him. "I've loved our baby from the first moment I found out about him."

"I was scared when you told me," he admits to her. "I still am sometimes. I don't ever want our son to look at me how I used to look at my own father. I hate him for just turning a blind eye all those years growing up and sometimes contributing to my never-ending torment. I never want that to happen with Adian."

"So you break the cycle," she tells him. "I'm pretty sure things will never turn out that way, partially because you're so adamant about it not happening."

"Also, I know you'd never let me near Adian if I ever hurt him in any way."

She nods once without hesitation. "You're damn right."

He gives her a small smile, glad that he wasn't wrong in assuming she'll be protective of their son. But also a little sad at the idea that she's possibly thought that he'll hurt their son. He would lock himself back up in Vault D before he ever even thought about laying a hand on his child. He would never be able to forgive himself if he did something like that. He is never going to turn into his father or any version of his brother. He is always going to be present in his son's life, and he is going to be a good father. He's determined. He's going to make it happen. Whatever it takes he's going to—

A quick tapping on his arm draws his attention out of his head and to Skye, his brows furrowing together when he sees her sitting tensely in her seat. Her eyes are locked onto something across the room, one hand resting on her belly, the other hitting his arm continuously.

"Hey, you okay?"

"Not really. I just...um...I think my water just broke."

His eyes go wide as he shifts abruptly on the couch to face her. "What? Are you sure?"

She glances at him and narrows her eyes. "Considering I'm the one who's about to give birth to your child, yes, I'm sure that my water just broke."

"Okay, okay. Uh, okay. We've got this. Um…" His brain races a mile a minute as he thinks about the next steps. They'd only briefly talked about this, about what they'd do when the time came. They didn't have to prepare nearly as much as anyone else in the world would. One of the benefits of living in the same building as the people who are going to deliver your baby. They don't have to worry about packing a bag or not getting there in time before the baby arrives, because everything they need is already in the building with them.

"Grant? Are you still with me?"

He quickly pulls himself out of his thoughts again in time to see Skye wincing. "Are you okay?" he asks immediately.

She nods. "I'm fine," she gets out, her face scrunched up and her eyes closed. She relaxes after a moment and breathes deeply. "Just a contraction, like I've been having for a while. We really need to get to the med bay."

"Yeah, yeah, you're right. Okay. Come on." He grabs her arms, allowing her to grab onto his, and pulls her up from the couch. "Are you okay to walk?" he asks her, ducking his head just enough to look in her eyes. "Because I can carry you if you can't walk."

She shakes her head. "Your leg."

"I'll be fine," he insists, not wanting her to worry about him. "Abby says my leg is doing better than she expected it would. But what's important right now is getting you to the med bay. I'll carry you if I need to."

She shakes her head again. "I'll be fine. Let's just go before your son decides he's really done waiting."

.

.

.

He doesn't pay attention to much of the whole process when Skye's pushing their son into the world. It all happens fairly quickly in his mind, though he's sure Skye thought it took way longer than it should have.

He's in complete awe of her throughout the entire thing, amazed at how strong and full of willpower she is. He hopes their son inherits that from her. Among so many other things.

All he really remembers from the time they spent in there, is Skye hanging onto his hands with a death grip every time the doctor told her to push, cursing him out as she did so. He's unsure of how much time it really took for it all to happen, only focused on making sure Skye was okay as she delivered their boy.

The next thing he's able to register is the sound of an infant crying and wetness on his cheeks that he sums up to his own tears of joy.

"It's a boy," the doctor confirms what they'd known since the ultrasound, holding the squirming baby in the air for them to see.

"Look at him, Skye," he says with a smile, probably the biggest smile he's ever had. "Look at our boy." He doesn't think before he leans down and kisses the top of her head, not caring that she's sweaty. She just brought their son into the world, he doesn't care about the sweat.

When she doesn't push him away or scold him for the affection, he chalks it all up to the moment they're in, basking in the joy of seeing their newborn son for the first time.

"How is he? Is he good? Is he okay?"

All he can think about is his son. He knows somewhere in his head that he should ask Skye how she's doing, but all he can focus on is his son's well-being.

"He's perfect," the doctor answers his questions, stepping over to them. "Mom and dad, meet your baby."

Her hears Skye gasp as Adian is laid on her chest, the minute old baby screaming loud and wiggling against her as the doctor dries him off and wraps a blanket around him. "Oh my goodness. Grant, look at him. He's so beautiful."

"Just like his mom."

"Hi, Adian, I'm your mom." She runs a finger across his cheek. "And I'm going to love you so much." She glances up at him. "Look what we made."

"I see him. He's so perfect. And you did such an amazing job."

"Would the dad like to do the honors?"

He reluctantly looks away from his son and over to the doctor. "What honors?" he asks with furrowed brows.

"Cutting the cord," the doctor clarifies, holding a pair of silver medical scissors out to him.

"Really?" He looks at Skye who just nods at him with a small smile. He turns back to the doctor and nods. "Okay."

He moves around to the side of the bed and takes the scissors from the doctor, looking down to where he's indicating at his son's umbilical cord.

He carefully snips between the two clasps, a few tears falling down his cheeks.

"Congratulations, you two," the doctor says, taking the scissors and allowing him to go back over to his family.

Leaning against the side of the bed, he runs a hand down over the top of his son's head, the smile never once leaving his face. "Welcome to the world, Adian."

.

.

.

"Knock, knock, anybody home?"

Looking up from the newborn in his arms, he smiles at the sight of Trip and Fitz lingering in the entryway to their little section of the medbay. Since it's not a real hospital with actual rooms, they'd had to make do with what they have.

"Hey, guys, come on in. Everyone but me is sleeping, though, so try to keep it down."

"Is this him?" Trip asks, moving to stand next to him and peer down at Adian. "Wow. He's like your spitting image. I may not have seen pictures of you as a kid, but this is definitely what you looked like."

"You really think he looks like me?"

"Absolutely," Fitz speaks up, still standing in the entryway.

Grant chuckles. "You haven't even seen him, Fitz."

Fitz shrugs. "Basic genetics. Is he healthy?"

Grant nods. "Very."

"Good. That's good."

"Do you want to hold him?" he asks.

Fitz opens and closes his mouth. "Um, I probably...my hand...I don't want to…"

"I get it," Grant says. "No worries. Maybe another time."

"Fitz may not want to hold him, but I definitely do," Trip tells him, setting down the bags he'd come in with. "Now hand him over."

Grant hesitates for just a moment before transferring his son into Trip's arms, coaching him on how to hold the baby correctly.

"Hey there, little man," Trip whispers with a smile. "I'm your Uncle Trip. And we're going to get into so much trouble together when you're older. You hear me?"

Grant frowns as he grabs his Polaroid camera off the nearby table. "Please do not turn my son into a troublemaker." He quickly snaps a photo of the two.

Trip snorts. "Please, with Skye as his mom he has it wired in his genes to be a troublemaker."

"I heard that."

He whips his head to the bed, seeing Skye slowly opening her eyes as she breathes in deeply. "Hey. Did you sleep okay?"

She shrugs. "I guess." She smiles at Trip and Fitz. "Hey, guys. It's so good to see you. And I see you've met the newest addition to the team."

"He's beautiful, Skye," Trip says.

"Thanks." He watches as her eyes zone in on the gift bags on the floor. "Did you guys bring stuff?"

"Presents," Fitz supplies, slowly moving into the room to stand next to Trip. He smiles softly down at Adian. "For the baby."

"You guys didn't have to do that," Grant tells them.

"Yeah," Skye agrees. "You already got him so much stuff at the party."

Trip shakes his head. "Nope. It is customary to bring gifts when you visit the baby for the first time. Besides, most of that stuff was meant for practicality and other such needs. The stuff we brought is for him personally."

"I got him a stuffed monkey," Fitz interjects. "Someone should get to have a monkey. Even if real ones are better."

He smiles. "Thanks, guys. That really means a lot."

Trip's eyes go wide when Adian starts squirming in his arms and making whining noises.

"I think he's just hungry," Skye tells the other man, calming him down.

Trip lets out a breath. "Oh, good. I thought I did something."

"You didn't do anything," Grant assures him, carefully taking his son back into his arms. He carries him over to Skye and settles him in her arms. "He was just missing his mom."

"Missing my boobs is a more accurate description," Skye says, cradling Adian against her chest.

"And that would be our cue to leave," Trip says.

Fitz nods in agreement, his eyes looking everywhere but at Skye. "Yes."

"But before we go," Trip says, "what did you guys decide to name him?"

"Adian," Grant supplies. "Adian Leo Ward." He laughs quietly at how comically wide Fitz's eyes get before he smiles and nods his head.

"That's a good name, you guys," Trip tells them.

Skye smiles as she runs a finger down Adian's cheek as he starts to eat. "We think so too. We also think that he's the cutest little boy with the greatest family around him."

Grant smiles as he sits back and watches Skye nurse their son, Fitz and Trip having left the room after exchanging quick goodbyes and promises to check in later.

He's a dad. He's helped create life and now that life is here and is going to rely on him for so much in the beginning.

He and Skye may not be in a relationship, but they're in a fairly good place and they're going to raise their son together in the best way that they know how. Nothing is going to stop him from being the best dad that he can be.

Grabbing his Polaroid again, he inserts a new cartridge before holding it up to frame his son and the mother of his son in the center as they bond. It's too perfect of a moment that he wants to hold onto forever, and a picture is the perfect way to do that.

This is a new beginning for him, for both of them. Nothing from their past is too important anymore. All that matters now is what they do to raise their son and give him the absolute best life that they can.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So? What did you think? Let me know in a review down below. I'd love to hear your thoughts.
> 
> Until next time,  
> Jellybean96 out!

**Author's Note:**

> So? What did you think? Let me know in a review down below. I'd love to hear your thoughts.
> 
> Until next time,  
> Jellybean96 out!


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